Darkened Heart
by Seena58
Summary: When Daisuke finds himself condemned for a power inside of him, he has no one to turn to, unless they want to risk death. Not even Dark can help him this time. What is the power, and what can he do? Who can he turn to? Why are they after him so badly? AU
1. One

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters. That's all.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 1 ---

The street was strangely quiet as the last residents flicked the light switches off and retreated for the night. All around it, dim lights were fading, and only a small breeze picked up, blowing through the deserted streets as a single person made their way through the darkening streets.

A young boy, only about the age of fourteen, could be see running, his feet thudding against the concrete below him, and his sharp, ragged gasps for breath cutting through the oppressed silence sharply, with no consideration of where he was going or who he was running to. The smell of smoke made him choke slightly, but he couldn't stop, and he knew it, but the realisation of the truth made tears of fear and frustration form at the corners of his strangely bright amber eyes.

He had no one to turn to, no one to seek comfort from anymore, and he knew that it was his fault that the last members of his family were now dead – forever gone from his life and leaving him to defend for himself. Only one member that was related to him by blood remained, and, he too, was gone: running away from the very same people who were chasing him at the same time. But he would never forget such a name – Dark.

Somehow the name had burned itself into his mind, and it was enough to encourage him to fight the fate that had been set for him:

Death.

Somehow it had seemed absurd at first, and he didn't want to think about it, but his family had comforted him, told him that everything would be fine, and that he would never be alone. He hated them, for their broken promises:

For leaving him on his own.

Tears splattered on the hardened footpath as he continued to run through the darkness blindly, not stopping for anything, the truth putting more than fear in his heart than anything else. His left arm hung limply by his side, and he winced as pain lanced through it each time it was moved slightly. He had broken it from his most recent escape, and, silently, he cursed himself for being so clumsy.

"_You always have to be ready for the unexpected, and you know it. You've got good balance, so make sure you know how to deal with it..."_

The words were so clear to him, said by Dark himself, and the small boy shook his head. He had broken his arm in an attempt to stop his whole body from shattering at the massive five-floor drop, but now it was useless. His blood red hair swept unconsciously across his eyes, which stung with pain as the breeze continued to blow past him, whipping his face and screaming in his ears.

Trying his best to ignore it, he concentrated on running, although his legs were beginning to tire and the muscles were begging for rest. But still, he continued, well aware that his very survival was counted on him covering as much distance between him and those who wanted to kill him.

As he forced his weary body to drag him through the deserted streets, his mind began to wander - back to the past. It was all so clear to him; when his parents had been with him, when he'd been under the training eye of his older cousin, Dark, and when he hadn't had worried about his life being on the line.

But it had been the past, and now, he had nothing left.

"_You have speed and determination, I can see that. Use it to your advantage, 'cause very few kids your age have it. It's a rare gift."_

He gasped as Dark's words came back to him. His knees were shaking below him, and he knew that he couldn't take it any longer. Collapsing slightly, he tried to regain his regular breathing pattern, his lungs straining for air.

The words had been so clear, yet it had been months since he'd seen Dark's face: flawless, full of confidence and his eyes, usually so warm beneath the usual mockery as he had always berated the smaller boy, and a kinship between them, although they were complete opposites.

As his mind flew back to the past, the past he had tried to seal away so long ago, warm faces of his parents, and grandparents, came back to him.

His mother, father and grandfather. They were so close in his mind – so clear – yet so far. But he knew the reality – they were gone, dead, and no amount of dreaming would bring them back. There was no way to erase the past, and now his own hands held the evidence.

He carried the blood. A blood feared by many normal people, and that was the reason they wanted to kill him. His parents had known it, yet they had kept it hidden from him until his fourteenth birthday.

He hated them for it. And still, he yearned for them, to hold him close, to comfort him, to protect him from the awful reality that had descended upon him. But their last words, before their death, still burned in his mind, and, he could almost feel them, their warmth; warmth he hadn't felt for a long time.

"_We love you... never forget that, Dai-chan..."_

"_You have to live, for our sake, Daisuke, and prove to them that what you hold isn't wrong for mankind..."_

"_We'll always watch over you, no matter what. So... make us proud... Daisuke..."_

Tears streaked his cheeks, as they fell unconsciously, and he shook his head violently, trying to let the feeling go – the feeling of need and want. He didn't need them, he'd lost everything already, and the reality stung him sharply in his heart.

He staggered up, trying to ignore the warm blood that fell freely from his broken arm and knees from the constant running. He had no one to turn to anymore, for he knew that his very presence with another person would lead to their death as well as his own pain. When it had first happened, a weight fell upon him sharply, crushing him, and now he knew that he couldn't turn to anyone for help, or comfort.

Doing so would lead to their death.

As he continued through the night, faces of people he had loved and cared for – friends and family – flashed out to him: his mother and father, grandfather, Dark, Takeshi, Riku and Risa...

He forced himself to swallow, the lump in his throat becoming unbearably large as the memory of all the people he'd been forced to leave hit him with the constant knowledge of his own doom.

He was alone. He couldn't turn to anyone for help. Doing so would kill them.

"_Pst. Yo, Daisuke, I'm here to help you. Come on, we'll get outta this hell-hole before they get ya again."_

Again, Dark's voice came back to him, and he flinched as another lance of sharp pain went through his weary body. The confidence that the purple-haired boy had possessed was so strong and full of unbound energy and trust, and he couldn't understand how it was possible. So many times, already, had Dark saved him from the fate he would have to face in the end, but the last time, he'd been found out, and now, he too, was being chased.

"... everyone..."

The last strands of energy in his body slowly faded away from him, and he no longer could take control over his body. As his legs staggered aimlessly through the darkness, he focused his attention towards the darkened sky. The moon was shimmering gently, through the thick sheet of cloud, and his eyes began to fill with pain and agony again as he collapsed on the cold floor.

"... all of you... you helped me... and you died... because they were chasing me..."

Blood splattered across the concrete, leaving thick patches of the red liquid on the stone, as his amber eyes allowed the tears to flow freely. His hair ruffled gently with the wind, and his whole body lanced with the pain that he had suffered over the last few weeks.

"... and still, you helped me... I hate you for that... I really do..."

The rising pitch of his voice was swept away by the gentle breeze, as sobs racked his entire body at what he was forced to face.

"... why didn't you just leave me alone to die? Why did you make me suffer like this? Why?"

As weariness took over his body completely, he could almost feel the compassion of all the people he had met and been with. Their words flowed through his mind, cutting through the pain and hate he had inside of him.

"_Hey, friends stick together, don't they, Daisuke?"_

"_Niwa-kun... we'll always be there to support you. Okay?"_

"_Ne? Niwa-kun, don't you trust us as friends?"_

"_Even if you're the only one to hold the blood, Dai-chan, we'll do whatever we can to make sure you can live a life where you don't have to fear about what people think of you."_

"_You're bravery will take you far, son."_

"_Don't forget, Dark's still with you, and we're always watching over you."_

"_Yo, Daisuke, don't forget what I said. Hope the training helps ya 'till we meet again."_

"Everyone..." he whispered weakly, "why..."

As the world went black, something within him woke up – a small flame: comforting, caring and full of life, telling him not to give up.

_(You have people who care for you. Let your flame grow and flourish. Don't let it die. Live a life that you won't regret.)_

"... won't..."

As the clouds parted, revealing the moon: a single figure remained out on the cold street, surrounded by his own blood, and unmoving.

And still, he remained breathing.

The flame of Niwa Daisuke continued to grow, fighting against the fate that had been placed upon him, and encouraging the small boy to do the same.

A gentle breeze ruffled his hair, as raindrops slowly began to fall upon his weary form. As the rain increased, the repetitive pattering sound was cut short by the sound of approaching footsteps.

Someone was coming.

----

Well, it was supposed to be a one-shot, but that depends if anyone wants me to continue, right? I have to plan it anyway. The main story was kinda taken off Kittiquin's "Blood" story, so that's why I'm being so cruel to our dear Daisuke (Blood is in Fictionpress, so if you like vampire stories, read it. It's scarily good, even for a prototype). It could have been from that nightmare he has in volume 4, but that's no fun. I think I'm on a violent streak or something. Well... that's it.

Oh, no flames, please. They burn, and besides, it was intentional to hurt Daisuke. Even I thought I was going crazy doing what I did. I'll be kind to him in later chaps if I continue it, but that's your choice. And, no, he isn't dead. I'm not that heartless. And I thought it'd be better to make them cousins, although they could just be friends. What do you think? I think Dark isn't... well, Dark. Or something.

What would we call this... cliffhanger? Is it? Nevermind, it's all here! Hope you enjoyed it!


	2. Two

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters. That's all.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 2 ---

The world around the redhead was blissfully dark and his thoughts were swimming wildly in all directions. He greeted the darkness that was presented to him, embracing it with all the energy left in him. The flame inside of him guttered slightly, as the cold seeped into his skin. But still it fought back. In an attempt to get his mind to work properly, it called out to him.

_(You have to live... you can't let your parents die in vain. You know that... don't you?)_

(... Do I?) came the weakened reply as the cold power shot through him.

_(Don't you remember what happened? On that particular day?)_

(I... I don't want to remember.)

Daisuke struggled with his thoughts, as the small flame continued to fight back, dispelling the darkness around him. His skin seared with pain when the warmth touched him, and he almost screamed, but the small voice continued to talk to him. Its tone was warm, as if a parent trying to calm their child.

_(Your parents died to protect you, and you know that. Even your friends; your girlfriend, even Dark... they all helped you, although they were putting their own safety at a risk, if they had been caught by... them.)_

(I know, but...) the redhead gasped as the warmth continued to seep into his skin. Unknown to him, its power was bringing him back to reality, (some of them... they died because of me being there. Even now, Dark... he's being chased. They know that if either one of us are caught, we can be used as bait for the other.)

_(But he won't be caught. And neither will you.)_

The voice faded away, the words echoing to him, as reality seemed to form itself back to him like a jigsaw puzzle. He stirred, groaning as the pain from his injuries hit him at full force.

"You're awake?"

At the sound of an unknown female's voice, Daisuke opened an eye, in an attempt to refocus on what had happened. All around him was fuzzy, but his nose was greeted with a musty smell of a room that had been sterile for more than a year. Once his eyes had adjusted with the dim light of where he was, he noticed that he seemed to be in a bare room. The walls were stripped from any decoration, and the only light source he could locate from his position was a tiny lamp.

"Where...?" he croaked, unable to get his mind to work properly. His throat was dry and he couldn't get his mouth to move properly at his command.

"You've been badly injured," said the unidentifiable voice, "so please, don't stress yourself too much, or it'll get worse. Here, drink this."

A cup was pushed in his direction, and he felt someone helping him up. He drank slowly, as his eyes focused on the person helping him. She was about his age, with dark red hair done up in a braid, and her eyes were the same type of flame-red that he had seen many times before by an old friend that he could no longer remember. Once he was done, she got up again.

"You should rest, okay?" she said, not turning to face him, "I'll get Celes. We have to check the damage you inflicted from your escape, Niwa-kun."

Daisuke didn't even ask how she knew him. He lay back and closed his eyes. Almost instantly the darkness of sleep engulfed his weary form gently.

---

"Yo! Daisuke! Catch the damn ball already!" called a sharp voice.

"Saehara!" whined the redhead, as he chased the escaping ball, "You keep on kicking it away from me! How am I supposed to catch it then?"

"Stop asking questions and get it back already!" barked Takeshi.

With a sigh, Daisuke did as he was told. Trudging down the road, his amber eyes looking for the soccer ball he had apparently 'lost', since his best friend had decided to aim it at gap between the trees next to him instead of straight at Daisuke.

Passing a group of older children who were talking among themselves, he managed to catch sight of a black and white object, and instantly went after it. It didn't take long before he managed to locate the soccer ball, and he picked it up.

"Why does Saehara always..." he grumbled slightly, as he turned to start his long trek back to his friends, but was cut short. His eyes widened in horror and he took a step back, unable to tear his gaze away from what had appeared before him.

A shapeless blob was forming into a giant creature. Claws began to form, and wisps of mist started to make their way towards the scared boy, who couldn't move. It struck out at him, and he was knocked back forcefully into a brick wall close by. The attack seemed to trigger something inside the boy, and he scrambled up from his sprawled position.

"Who... who are you?!" he managed to stammer, his eyes still locked on the demented creature, "What... what do you want?!"

The monster stopped in its tracks, as if trying to comprehend what the small boy had said. It hissed in reply, making the boy's skin crawl unpleasantly, but he couldn't stop staring at the creature. Unknown to him, wisps of pure white energy had begun to form, and was counter-acting the other, darkened wisps of energy. Before Daisuke's eyes, the white energy got larger, towering over the monster, and, as it howled, it faded away into nothingness.

"What...?" he whispered, as he clutched the soccer ball close to him, "What was that...?"

"Dai-chan?!" shrieked a female's voice, and he turned.

"Mum?" he asked. Emiko ran over to him, her hair flying behind her as she got to her son.

"Oh, Dai-chan, why?" she asked, "Why did it have to be him?!"

She threw her arms around him, holding him tightly as she talked to herself. The small boy was confused with her reaction, his mind still not working properly to understand the full meaning and danger he had just faced. Inclining his head slightly, he attempted to open his mouth to speak, but weariness took over him unexpectedly and, as he fell unconscious, he heard his mother speaking softly.

"I'm so sorry, Dai-chan... I didn't think that you would have to be the one to carry the burden..."

---

Daisuke woke up, sweating. He sat up gingerly, only vaguely noticing that someone had put his arm into some sort of cast. He bent over so that his head was lying on his knees. Tears formed in his eyes, as the memory came back to him. A small voice in his head, unlike the flame inside of him, reminded him that he had only been a small child then, and it was only natural that he hadn't know what to do. But still, the feeling of grief descended upon him.

"Mum..." he whispered, "you knew... didn't you? Why did you keep it away from me then? Why didn't you just tell me?"

"Ah... are you back with us again?" asked another voice, unlike the one from before. It seemed more faded and misty-like, yet calm and friendly.

He held his head up slightly, and came face-to-face with another girl. Her hair was held back into two ponytails and was a rich crimson colour.

(Like blood...) he thought instantly, but shook his head to face her, "Did you help me? Um... thank you."

At this, the girl smiled, her eyes glimmering slightly, "It was my pleasure. And you, Niwa Daisuke, are you feeling alright now? I mean, better to know that your arm will be fine as long as you do not bother it too much."

"... How do you know me?" he asked, "Who... who are you?"

"My name is Celes," came the simple reply, "and I came to help your injuries, since I am a priestess. As to knowing you, who does not know you?"

At her polite tone and speech, Daisuke couldn't help but cringe slightly at her serenity of her answer, and felt frustrated yet again. The flame inside of him flickered slightly, bathing his soul in its warmth and he sat back, as the girl left.

_(As long as you live... there is still a chance...)_ it told him.

(A chance for what? To be killed?) he shot back. It didn't answer him, and he stared up at the dusty ceiling, until he heard the door creaking open again. Turning his head slightly, he took a brief glance at the other girl, who he recognized as the one who had been with him before he had fallen asleep the first time.

She was balancing a tray with one hand as she placed her free one on the door handle before she entered. He noticed that she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt, with a small embroidery star on the shoulder, and had a pair of faded, light blue pants on, which also held a small star on the outside leg.

"Niwa-kun... is something wrong?" she asked, as she closed the door carefully, and he shook his head in reply, "Well... if you insist... I brought some food for you."

He accepted the offer, although his stomach didn't feel like taking in food. As he slowly gnawed at what he had been given, the girl sat on a stool in one of the corners of the room, as if not to cause too much attention to her being there. When he was done, she got up again, but, before she could hurry out of the room, Daisuke stopped her.

"What's your name and how do you know me?" he asked.

"You can call me Akane," she said softly, "and... I know of the Niwa family... and the 'curse' that you hold."

"But... that doesn't make any sense..." he whispered, trying to ignore the pain that seemed to grow stronger as the depression of reality came back to him, "I know that people chased me because..." he swallowed, "I was a Niwa... but where..."

"We're in an underground sort of base," putting the tray aside, Akane took the stool and sat close to the bed he was on, "but... the world now is scared of... supernatural sorts of occurrences. That's why Celes and I... well, we kinda formed our own little resistance here."

"So... you live here?" he asked.

"Yeah..." she sighed, "some of the ones who haven't been discovered are free to wander for short periods of time, but for those who have been found... well, it's a depressing thought, and I can't help but feel sorry for them..."

"Won't they kill you if you're caught?"

"That, or use us as guinea pigs for crazy experiments," she stood up, preparing to leave, "you need to rest now, Niwa-kun."

"... Akane-san... why are you helping me? You and Celes-san...," he crouched over and buried his head in the folds of the blanket that covered him, "people have done the same for me before... and I don't want to put anyone in danger again..."

Akane sniffed, "You can say that all you want, but I don't allow anyone to stay at death's doorstep as long as it's in my power."

She then turned her head to face his bent form, "I know it may hurt now, especially to see the people you care for and love to be hurt. But, if you keep on living, they will too. Although I have to say that I was really scared when Hiwatari-kun found you in the rain... are you sure that you're not coming down with a flu or anything?"

"... Who?" Daisuke asked blankly, confusion stirring within him at the mention of another name. She shrugged lightly.

"You'll meet him soon enough, I'm sure," she said, "he's one of the few people who actually live outside this base: under high magical-protected circumstances, of course. He was worried about you as well, so I should send someone over to tell him you're okay..."

"Then... can you tell him... that I thank him...?" the redhead looked up briefly, and she smiled, one hand on the door, the other carrying the tray.

"Of course. But you can always tell him when he comes. Now, rest."

She closed the door softly, and he did as he was told for the second time. He closed his eyes, as he tried to work out what had happened.

(So... I won't be left on my own? But... what about all my friends?)

_(You'll see them again, I'm sure of it. Just believe in yourself, whenever you feel doubt of any sort. Only then can you change what has happened.)_

As he felt the flame inside him awakening again, he embraced its warmth, not trying to escape it. He was bathed in the power, and, as he fell asleep, only one question remained for him.

(Is Dark okay?)

----

Yes yes, I'm leaving it here. Why? Well... he thinks too much, and my head hurts. Owie... well, people like it, so I continue it, right? Okay, I should be doing my other stories, but... well, you know... okay, maybe not.

Not as evil, right? And don't ask me about where I pulled this off, 'cause I can't remember anymore, nor do I care. My brain's been too evil to me... have to kill it eventually... Argh...

-- _Reviewer Replies! _(Well, why not?)

-Staryday: Glad you liked it! (smiles and hands over a large land mine) Use this to get rid of anyone who annoys you... oh wait... you gave me a cookie... I give you a land mine... (shrugs) fair trade. Well, I'll update everything ASAP... but what's the chance of that?

-Rekkaboziegirl: Did I spell it right this time? Hope so... anyway, hope you liked this chapter and all that! And my mind still isn't working straight, so you'll have to bear with me... sadly. You get a fluffy cloud for your review! (Yes, I'm obsessed with clouds)

-xXdark-angelXx: Hmm... no one cares that I hurt Daisuke... oh well, what's done is done. Let's just see how long it takes for me to finish this! Uh... glad you liked the story! Here's a fluffy duck for you! (Duck: quack quack. Seena58: Awwwww...!)

And if you want a particular prize for reviewing, just tell me and you'll get it (not literally, of course. Wish I could, though...)! Hm... need to find that little With toy I threw somewhere... (and, no, I don't have one of those. I wish...)

Well, that's all for now! Tell me what you think, okay?


	3. Three

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters and now... alot about the past. That's all.

---- Darkened Heart ----

--- 3 ---

Daisuke wasn't sure how much time had passed since he'd been taken to the base, but the next few days were peaceful beyond imagination. Because no one disturbed him since the brief meetings with Akane and Celes, he felt at peace and tried to relax. This didn't help, since his mind was still worried and concerned with Dark's whereabouts and how he was. He stared blankly at the ceiling and the interior of the room, but there wasn't much to see and he sighed.

The redhead turned as the door opened and a girl and boy entered the room. They looked exactly alike, except for the clothes and both had the exact same dark green hair colour. The girl was wearing a long chestnut brown tunic and a skirt beneath it while the boy was just left with a tunic of the same tone and pants.

"Hi! You must be the new one," the girl called cheerfully in a friendly tone as she stepped up to him while the boy remained by the doorframe.

"Yeah, I'm Daisuke Niwa," he nodded politely and shook her hand. She smiled and beckoned the boy to stand next to her. After giving her a long stare, he did so before the girl continued.

"I'm Leah and this's my twin brother, Zeike," she introduced herself and the boy, "It's nice to meet you, Daisuke."

"... Same," Zeike said shortly before turning away, "Leah, we should go."

"Aw... but I wanted to talk to him for a bit!" whined Leah, "Don't be mean, Zeike! It's been so long since we had any other company!"

"And what would Celes say on the matter?" he raised an eyebrow. At this, she pouted, but seemed slightly annoyed at the same time.

Daisuke inclined his head before speaking in a hesitant tone, "Um... if you shouldn't be here... then maybe you should go..."

Leah spun around, her hair flying wildly and she shook her head stubbornly, "I don't care! Zeike, if you don't wanna stay, then you don't have to, okay? I'll be the one who gets in trouble, not you. And besides, what can she do about it?"

He frowned at this, hazel eyes flashing in the dim light, before he sauntered off and closed the door with a sharp snap. Silence filled the room for a moment, before the girl finally turned around to face the redhead again, who looked slightly worried at the sudden outburst that he had just witnessed. She smiled calmly before taking a seat next to his bed.

"Don't worry too much about him, Daisuke," she said reassuringly, "My brother can be so stubborn sometimes, and Celes is a good person most of the time. She doesn't lose her temper or anything, and she knows how to handle even the most stressful of situations. It's the outside world that worries her the most."

"What's out there to be afraid of?" asked Daisuke curiously, "I know... there are people who are afraid of us, but... Akane-san... she said that some people here can roam outside at times... but..."

"Yeah, people are scared of us," Leah nodded sadly at the fact, "but we know why we're here, so we can't just be caught. That's why Akane convinced Celes to let us leave this place once in a while: so that we can be ready when it comes."

"When what comes?" the redhead frowned.

"I'm not really sure, but... an evil is awakening..." her voice suddenly became darker and her eyes narrowed to slits, "An evil that can't just be pushed away and forgotten. But... normal ways of life and people don't want to accept this as a fact, and..."

"Leah, what are you doing here?" an older female entered the room and seemingly glided in. She had rich, dark purple hair that was set into a high ponytail, and wore a black robe that swept gracefully on the floor. She gave Leah a short glance with light violet eyes before turning to Daisuke, "Do excuse her, Niwa-san. Leah is the sort of person who loves to talk to everyone she meets."

"Elena..." at this, Leah jumped up smartly to attention, "Yes? Is something the matter? Or... did Zeike tell you where I was..."

Elena shook her head slowly and patiently, "No, he didn't tell me. Celes merely asked that you had to come to the meeting, so I assumed that you would be here."

"Ah! I forgot!" she jumped up before bowing to Daisuke, "Well, see you around, Daisuke!"

She ran out of the room and left the redhead with the older woman, who sighed. Taking a long look at the empty room, Elena gave him a small smile.

"I'm sure you can see that she has a tendency to act on impulse. Don't mind her too much," she explained, and Daisuke shook his head.

"It's okay. But... how long have I been here? I can't remember what happened," he replied.

"You've been sleeping for a few days, true," she nodded, "but Akane believes that in one or two days you'll be fine again."

"I see..." Daisuke inclined his head slightly, "uh... what is this meeting thing anyway?"

"Oh, nothing that you have to worry about at the moment," Elena answered in an uncomfortable voice, as if remembering something important, "Well, I should be going now. Until we meet again, Niwa-san."

She left the room swiftly, closing the door behind her. The redhead closed his eyes, as he sat in complete silence. His head no longer throbbed painfully and he felt better, but questions continuously popped back into his head. Many things had been left unanswered and he was still worried for Dark, whom he hadn't heard for, for the past few weeks since his escape.

At the remembrance of his cousin, Daisuke rolled over and sat up in a more comfortable position. He stuck a hand into one of his pockets and pulled out a small wallet that he had kept with him for as long as he could remember. Opening it, it held pictures of himself with his family and one or two with Dark present.

The redhead frowned, unable to get his mind to work right as he sat there, pouring over the old pictures and trying to answer the question about where and how Dark was.

_(You shouldn't worry so much,) _said the voice in his head reassuringly,_ (He can take care of himself just fine, and you know it.)_

(Maybe...) he shot back, (but what happens if someone hurts him? I... I don't want more people in danger...)

_(You can't choose the people that get involved, or how they'll act,)_ pointed out the voice, _(And Dark is pretty strong-willed, isn't he?)_

(I guess...)

Daisuke sat up when he heard a doorknob turn. As the door to the room creaked open slowly yet again, Akane entered, looking fairly happy that he was looking better.

"So, are you feeling better now?" she asked briskly, "If you didn't wake up today, I might have had to do something more drastic..."

"Akane-san? What are you doing here?"

"I've heard those people go on forever," she answered, "and it's not like I don't know what they're talking about, anyway. In the end, it all sounds the same and I don't think that my brain can take much more of it, so I excused myself."

She closed the door behind her and began to move around the room restlessly, tidying up the place as she did so. While Daisuke watched her silently, he wondered what she was running from, and decided to ask.

"Akane-san... why are you here?"

"Eh?" taken by surprise, she blinked at him blankly.

"I mean, why are people chasing after you? What... what is it?" he looked down hastily, "I mean... sorry."

"Don't apologise."

Without hesitation, Akane took the stool and sat next to the bed, and he gave another glance. She was frowning slightly, but her eyes reflected the sense of longing and suffering. For a moment they were in complete silence, as Akane fidgeted with her clothes, before she finally gave him a steady look and began to speak.

"I haven't said much about myself, have I? And Celes doesn't like to mention it either," she shrugged, "I guess that was just how we were; ignoring the truth and what our future was bound to be. But... it seems that it didn't make much of a difference, since we can't ignore it forever, and you've noticed it as well, haven't you?"

He nodded, "But... I didn't even know about it properly until I was twelve... by then, I didn't know what to think..."

"I know... it was confusing," Akane agreed grimly, "But what can we actually do about it? My parents abandoned me when I was really young, but... the power in me just continued to grow...

The power to control Time itself."

"Time...?" Daisuke repeated.

"Yeah... our very existence in life... how we are able to live... if the power of Time itself," she explained, "You see... with this power, I can actually manipulate what happens with people I know... and even see into the future, or even a person's past. But worst of all, I can--"

"Akane?" the door opened again and Celes entered, looking disappointed, "Why are you here instead of the meeting? I was wondering where you went."

"Celes..." Akane gave the Priestess a bored look, "We don't get anywhere with those types of conversations and we always come up with the same ideas. That alone won't be able to help us now and you know it."

"But you are still needed," came the retort, "Now come, Hiwatari-san will be coming soon and you cannot be late."

"Can't someone else explain it instead?" her voice seemed suddenly strained, disappointed that she was unable to finish her explanation, "I know Clef knows all of our strategies and plans by heart. I know he can do it."

"Really, Akane," Celes sighed, "Must I tell you that you are the one responsible for this all? You have to be a worthy planner and leader."

Akane shook her head in annoyance and gave the redhead an apologetic glance, "Looks like I have to go. Don't worry, I'll send Kain down. He knows what I know and he can deal with it."

Daisuke nodded in understanding and flopped down, doing his best not to injure or irritate his bandaged arm and injuries. He was soon greeted with silence again and he contemplated on what he knew and what he had just learnt.

(Something evil is approaching... and normal people don't trust others with unnatural powers,) he told himself bitterly, (Akane-san possesses something that sounds uncontrollable and Celes-san doesn't look like she wants me to know... and I still need to ask about Dark...)

His heart felt heavy with dread, but he tried to shake it away. He reminded himself sharply that he didn't have the time to wallow in his own self-pity and closed his eyes. The familiar voices of his friends and family reawakened in his mind and he allowed himself to be swallowed in the warmth of happier memories.

---

"Hi! Are you new here?" a girl with short brown hair smiled up at him, as he stood alone, looking nervous. Taken by surprise, Daisuke gave her a strange look and she laughed, making him blush in embarrassment.

"Um... y-yeah..." he mumbled in reply and looked to the floor, "I'm N-Niwa Daisuke..."

"Well, I'm Harada Riku and here," she waved a hand at a girl close by, who had slightly longer hair than she did, "is my twin sister, Risa!"

Risa, noticing that someone was talking about her, went over to the two, "Hm? Who's this Riku? A friend?"

"No, we just met," Riku smiled again, "But if it's okay with you, could we be friends? This is Niwa Daisuke-kun!"

"Oh, hi! It's nice to meet you!" the other girl grabbed the redhead's hand and shook it, "As you must know, I'm Risa!"

"Yeah," relaxing, Daisuke smiled at both girls.

"So... did you just move here or did you transfer schools?" asked Riku curiously as they all sat down, "There are quite a few students that do that."

"My parents moved," he explained shortly, "I can't remember why, though... they never told me properly..."

"Yo! Is that you, Daisuke?"

Taken by surprise for the second time that day, the redhead found himself knocked over by a familiar raven-haired boy. Struggling uselessly, he fought for air before telling off the person on top of him.

"Saehara! What are you doing here?!"

"Well, whaddya know," grinning, Daisuke's childhood friend grinned, "You do remember me. I thought you mighta forgotten after I moved away."

"I didn't know you went to this school," came back the muttered reply as Takeshi got off him. The Harada twins blinked at the outcome before Risa decided to speak.

"Niwa-kun... you know Saehara-kun?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah," Daisuke scratched the back of his head, "We used to live close to each other when we were six, but then Saehara moved... so... well, you know..."

"Well, in any case," Takeshi leapt up as the bell started to ring and dragged Daisuke up in the process, "I'll just have to show you around, won't I? C'mon!"

"Bye Niwa-kun!" called Riku and Risa in unison and he waved in reply before telling off the other boy, who was still dragging him.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"Well, one thing about those twins," whispered Takeshi, "They can be very... dangerous around new students. They have a tendency to be very, very nice and it can scare one off for a loooooong time. You better know that before you get involved with those two."

"... You're weird, Saehara."

Takeshi merely laughed at this before dragging Daisuke into the building.

---

The redhead opened his eyes and took a long look at the ceiling, lost in thought. The Harada twins had been nice since they had first met and he couldn't understand Takeshi's warning. He rolled over and sighed, not bothering to turn when a door opened.

"Are you Niwa?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, Akane might've told you already, but I'm Kain."

At this, the redhead rolled over again to face the newcomer. The boy had short, rusty-red hair and seemed to be wearing faded clothes that looked too big for him, but his eyes were alight with determination. Nodding, Kain went over to stand next to the bed as Daisuke sat up again.

"Akane-san sent you down, didn't she?" he asked.

"Yeah, she did," was the reply, "Apparently Celes stopped her before she could finish her explanation on why we're all here and all that, so I got the job."

"So... what do people possess that forces them to live here?"

"... Have you ever heard of the Thirteen Elements, by any chance?"

"Um..." Daisuke racked his brains for a moment and then nodded slowly, "I think I read it in a book once... when I was researching for a project... but I wasn't paying too much attention, so..."

"Well, to put it simply, the Thirteen Elements make the power of Time, which is the very source of life and our existence," Kain explained, "Most of the people here actually possess the power of one of the Elements, and that's why we're here. Only Celes is the one who doesn't hold that power, and you as well."

"But... I don't understand what I'm doing... what I can do..."

"Well, Hiwatari's coming down soon to see you, so I'm sure he and Akane can help you find out what you can do."

"Oh..." Daisuke inclined his head, "But... Dark..."

"Your cousin?"

The redhead nodded.

"Hm... well, I guess we can work out where he is. We haven't mentioned that in the meetings yet, so I guess I ought to bring it up."

Kain made for the door, still thinking hard, "Well, I hope that explained a few things. Akane is the only one who can give a proper explanation, so you just take care."

He closed the door with a sharp snap and the redhead bit his lip. Slowly, he tried to get out of bed, putting pressure on his feet slowly. Once he felt more stable, he managed to locate his shoes and put them on before opening the door with his uninjured hand.

He was greeted with a long corridor, with little light and almost no warmth. Ignoring the cold feeling, Daisuke made his way down the corridor and was greeted with other doors and rooms that looked like they'd been used for years.

(It's like a maze...) he thought, (Almost like they don't want anyone to escape from it...)

He stopped when he noticed that there was only one door facing him and, slowly, he attempted to open it, although he knew that it was wrong. Almost at once it swung open, and he was almost blinded by a light that was being emitted from the room.

"Huh...?" the redhead took a step forward, hesitantly.

Once the light had subsided, Daisuke noticed that the room, that had looked practically deserted, was actually decorated with numerous paintings and, in the center, a large statue stood on a pedestal. Taken in by the beauty of the artwork, he took a step closer towards them for a better look.

(Like home...) he thought, (But... these paintings hold a really strong power in them as well...)

He frowned, lost in thought, but spun around as someone opened a door close by. Unable to move out of surprise, he caught sight of a tall figure standing by the opened doorway. Daisuke took a step back.

(Who...?) he thought in panic.

----

Uh... well, okay, I have to say that he wanders in the past too much. I'm now asking for suggestions, or nothing will happen. Help always makes me happy, so let's do this, okay? Be kind to little redheads though...

_-- Reviewer Replies!_

-Staryday: Glad you liked the land mine! Maybe I should supply myself with more... hm... looking forward to it... Anyway, I'll just give you a little Dark plush, okay? Just don't throw him at any nerds: It can kill. (cackles madly) Anyway, three guesses who the new dude is and Dark will be there (definately. You can't have a story without him... most of the time, anyway) and Krad will come, eventually, anyway... I can't leave him out! I just have to work out what to do now...

-Rinkufan: Yah, you can have the little With toy, it's just SOOOO adorable! Sorry... I just find it cute. Thanks for the nice comment and... do you have any theories to where this story could go off to? Hm... have to think harder...


	4. Four

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sur you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 4 ---

Complete silence blanketed the entire area, surrounding the two people in the single room. Besides the aura Daisuke could feel being emitted from the paintings and various artworks, it almost seemed that the entire world had gone still: died, before reality had descended upon them. Something about the thought made him sick and he wanted to run, to escape from whoever it was. But it was clear that his body was refusing to listen to him and he remained frozen on the spot, unable to make a sound.

The person clearly hesitated for a moment, before taking a pace forward. Because of the sudden appearance of even brighter light glaring into his eyes, the redhead couldn't get his eyes to adjust and merely kept silent.

"What are you doing here?" asked the person in a low voice.

"Wha--?" the word left Daisuke's throat before he even knew he was doing so, and, suddenly getting the feel of his legs, stumbled back a bit, while the person continued to advance on him. In the back of his mind something told him to run and hide from whoever it was, but still his body wouldn't function properly and he could only just move.

"I thought that you wouldn't be up until at least the afternoon."

"Eh?" at this, he stopped and waited for his eyes to adjust properly. The person stopped as well, as the redhead fell silent, but remained confused, if not apprehensive. The glare that had been affecting his eyes dimmed back and allowed him to take in the other person's features.

The person was a boy, not much older than him, Daisuke guessed, although he was considerably taller and had light blue hair and cold azure eyes, which were covered by the glasses he wore. His clothes were also different from the people who lived there as well, he noticed, and seemed fairly modern and plain, like it had been for him before he was forced to run away from the chains of society: after their deaths and the loss of everything.

"Are you alright? Niwa Daisuke-kun," the boy asked, his voice changing into a less intimidating tone as the redhead merely stared in silence.

"Ah..." he started hesitantly, "Um... I..." (Who...?)

"Hiwatari-kun?" Akane appeared from the door that Daisuke had used to enter, "I thought I heard you entering, but when you didn't arrive at the meeting, I was beginning to wonder what had... Ah, are you already better, Niwa-kun?"

"Akane-san!" Daisuke spun around to see the girl, who had just entered the scene.

"Takada, I thought you were at the meeting," the blue-haired boy stated coolly, but she shrugged it off without too much trouble before joining the still surprised redhead.

"Farea agreed on setting up another illusion to get me out of that stuffy room," she explained, "He hates it too, but unless we get another one to put up an illusion of him, I don't think it will be happening anytime soon. And you're late."

"I have my reasons."

"So you've met Niwa-kun in person?" Akane nodded towards Daisuke before turning back to the other, "Niwa-kun, this is Hiwatari Satoshi-kun. He's the one that found you and brought you here. He rarely comes, even for meetings, so this is a bit of a surprise."

"Ah... Ah! Sorry!" Daisuke bowed, blushing at the sudden realisation, "I didn't know that you were... uhm... thanks for everything..."

"It's okay," because the redhead couldn't see his face, Satoshi smiled slightly, but his voice remained neutral and unemotional, "You have been through a lot, though, haven't you? After the revelation of your power, your family and leaving your friends, as well as--"

"Did you hear something about his cousin?" Akane raised an eyebrow, and Daisuke jerked his head up instantly.

"Did you hear about Dark?" he asked and the blue-haired boy shrugged slightly before replying.

"There has been no trace of him since you escaped that night," he said evenly, not looking at the distressed yet curious redhead, "He has either fled completely, in hiding, or dead."

"Dark... he wouldn't die..." Daisuke whispered, his eyes suddenly coming to life, "I just know he wouldn't."

"But Niwa-kun, why were you here in the first place?" questioned Akane, only then just taking in all the details of their first meeting, "You were supposed to stay in your room until we were certain you were fully recovered." The redhead looked at the floor for a moment, hesitant on answering, but it was obvious that neither of the two would let him off lightly.

"Uhm... I was just... I just wanted to go for a walk, since... everyone was at the meeting and... no one was explaining what was in it, so..." he mumbled with a large number of uncertain spaces where it wasn't necessary, "And I just ended up here..."

"And you managed to come here, from your room, without anyone showing you the way?" asked Satoshi, walking over to join them and Daisuke swallowed nervously – not sure of the consequences – and nodded. He failed to notice the nod that passed between the blue-haired boy and Akane and only looked up when he felt a hand placed on his shoulder. His amber eyes met with cool azure ones, which, beneath the icy exterior, seemed to hold an inner comforting interior.

"Are you sure you came here on your own?" Satoshi asked slowly, almost like he was talking to a small confused child.

"Of course," answered Daisuke and heard Akane sigh.

"Niwa-kun, when was the first time you noticed something strange within you?" she inquired softly, "The first time you found yourself as an individual from others."

"I only knew about what was inside of me when I turned thirteen," he replied, confused with her strange attitude, "And that was about a little over a year back."

"But that wasn't the first time you noticed the... power in you," stated Satoshi, still looking down at the smaller boy.

"... I was attacked by a weird monster when I was seven," Daisuke mumbled, voice barely above a whisper, "I can't remember what happened exactly, but I think that was the first..."

"No wonder," the blue-haired boy said, although more to himself than to anyone else.

"Why? Is something wrong?" perplexed, he could only stare questioningly at the two, but they merely shook their heads as a reply.

"Niwa-kun, I think you should just stay in your room for a while," Akane suggested, still in a softer voice than usual, "I know that you probably have more questions than you should have, but... we'll talk about it later, okay?"

"..."

"We can talk about it later," Satoshi repeated firmly, and Daisuke finally nodded, "I'll take you back to your room and then I'll go to the meeting."

Akane gave her own nod of approval before leaving the two boys on their own, and the redhead allowed himself to be partly dragged back to his room, his mind in complete turmoil, confusion and doubt, rolling together into one big feeling to utter disorder.

(Is there something about me that I need to know?) he wondered, (And... what's so special about me, anyway? And Dark, where is he...)

_(Don't worry about your cousin,)_ the voice in his head persisted, _(He'll be back sooner than you think.)_

(And how do you know that?) asked the redhead.

_(Because I'm you.)_

(What?)

He was greeted with silence once more and only came back to life when Satoshi opened the door to his room. Once the blue-haired boy was gone from sound and sight, Daisuke sat on his bed, unable to relax.

(I need to find out what's going on...) he thought.

--

As Satoshi left the redhead, he couldn't help but notice the power within the smaller boy: something that was strong, powerful and uncontrollable...

"Hiwatari-san, everyone is waiting for you," Elena said pointedly as she saw him approach. He nodded in acknowledgement before entering the room that she was standing by.

It was a small box-shaped enclosure with a circular table in the center and seats surrounded it, occupied by a number of people – males and females – and they all turned as he came in. Leah smiled at him and waved, while the others seemed more mutinous and his mind tugged faintly that something wasn't right. Satoshi bowed courteously at Celes, who was sitting up front, and she returned the gesture curtly.

"Might I inquire to what is going on?" he asked as he took a seat, away from the others.

"Well, we're talking about Dark, the cousin to Niwa Daisuke," Kain explained from the opposite end of the table, "Seems like you know a bit about the matter, don't you, Hiwatari? Since you found Niwa in the first place..."

"It was purely coincidental," Satoshi corrected him smoothly, "And what do you know about this Dark? Do we know about his origins and bloodlines?"

"Not enough to work by," Zeike said, "Farea hasn't left this hideout since last week. So we can't get anymore than what we have."

"Which is?" the blue-haired boy asked impatiently.

"As much as you know," Zeike shrugged, "He's being chased as well, since Niwa is, and he vanished the same night you found him. It seems that he holds a pretty good knowledge on the city he lives in since he lost the people chasing him pretty easily without resorting to something more drastic."

"... So there was no trace of him?" Satoshi asked.

Akane stared blankly at the people around her before speaking up, "Despite this, we have to remember the real reason why we're all here: to fight the evil that's approaching us. Raine, has there been any other reports on this thriving darkness?"

Raine, who was a younger girl stood up and cleared her throat importantly; "There have been many small disturbances, followed by a large path of destruction, but Ryu and I don't think that the Darkness won't be around for a while. We can keep our hopes up, but--"

"-- But we can't get too calm," Ryu, Raine's twin, finished, "It's unpredictable, and I think the number of monsters appearing has increased considerably over the past few months."

"So what are we to do?" asked Celes, "We are still not strong enough to fight the evil on our own, and with so many against the power we hold..."

"We'll find a way," Akane cut in, "Now, I'm leaving Kain with the preparations. Hiwatari-kun and I need to supervise the transferring of the elemental powers. When they're free you never know what will happen next."

"... Very well," the Priestess seemed fairly disappointed with the younger girl's decision, but knew better than to go against it: Akane and Satoshi, along with Kain, were the three who had begun to entire deal with the helping of supernatural powers and held the most power over the others. Despite this, they rarely acted so and gave fair ground all the time unless they had to step in, which was a rare case.

The entire meeting dispersed without another word amongst themselves until they had left the room. Celes gave the last two members pointed looks before she swept gracefully away into the swallowing corridors. Akane heaved a sigh and Satoshi frowned at her.

"We both know that the twins take care of the elemental balance," he said curtly, "Celes isn't going to believe that."

"Of course," she agreed vaguely as she closed the door after a brief glance outside to make sure that no one was there, "But when Niwa-kun managed to find a way into that room, without any sort of assistance... you felt it too, right?"

"Yes," the blue-haired boy replied, "It was nothing that I had felt before. Is this what we are really looking for? Clearly he has enough problems to deal with as it is."

"He's lost everyone he cares for," Akane pursed her lips, "And we need to make sure as well. You're right, Hiwatari-kun, we can't help him with his mental problems, but if you really did hear of news about Dark..."

"Even living outside of this place I don't get enough information," Satoshi cut in, "But there have been certain reports about that particular one... He could be closer than you think."

"Do you have to speak in riddles as well?" she huffed, "Clearly Niwa-kun wants an explanation and we both know that he was drawn to that room from the power within him, since no one can go there in the first try, save yourself. And that other one..."

"Are you coming or not?"

"Sure, I'm not complaining."

Arguing among themselves had become second nature to the two, since they knew each other from the age of twelve. The joint power of Akane's spells and Satoshi's intelligence, the two had found more depth about their world and the 'gates' that were split.

The blue-haired boy went ahead, as they lapsed into silence, their own minds moving at their own pace to try and find out what they really wanted. Once they arrived at Daisuke's door, Leah, who was clearly out of breath, interrupted them both.

"Akane... Satoshi..." she panted, "We just got... a report... we found... monsters clearing section T12... attacking someone... you have to..."

Satoshi took charge instantly, "See if you can get the Hit Squad into the area and we'll be there."

Leah nodded before dashing off again, and he turned as he heard the door squeak open. He didn't bother to turn; "He's not there."

"Hiwatari-kun..." Akane drawled, with a hint of impatience in her voice, "I'm suspecting that you know the reason behind this?"

"If you want an explanation, then stop asking questions," Satoshi replied, "And we need to return to that room. Niwa's already there."

"And that's what annoys me about you," she muttered, more to herself than anyone else as she followed after the blue-haired boy once more, "You keep too much to yourself."

--

The redhead was crouching, staring deeply into the hues and shades of the picture and completely marveled by its beauty. Unable to find the answers to his questions, Daisuke had returned to the room, which seemed to be bathed in warmth and comfort. He sighed.

(Why won't anyone tell me what's going on?) he asked himself, (Why won't they tell me anything? Is there something about me that they're... scared of?)

His memory of the people who chased him resurfaced for a moment and he shuddered.

(I can't think about that,) he thought, (But I need someone to answer my questions.)

The picture he was staring into seemed to be fairly old fashioned, which red and brown overwhelmed the other colours and Daisuke could feel the warmth and power inside of it. He didn't know if it was possible that the paintings were alive, but he was beyond caring.

"A power that cannot be controlled..." he said softly.

"True," replied another voice and the redhead fell over in surprise.

"Wha-?!"

"You can feel the power in them?" Satoshi asked as he stood behind Daisuke. The smaller boy swallowed nervously and nodded.

"Is that... is that a problem?" he managed to ask without stumbling over his words. He heard Akane cluck her tongue as she bent over him for a moment.

"You removed your bandages," she said.

"Um..." Daisuke blinked. It was only then that he remembered that he had indeed removed the bandages that had been constricting his movement ever since the time he'd woken up completely recovered.

"I guess you're fine then," Akane couldn't help but smile at the obviously confused redhead, but it faded almost at once as Satoshi inclined his head, "But that's besides the point. Were you drawn to this room yet again?"

"'Drawn'...?" he shook his head, "I was just a bit impatient sitting alone and this room reminds me of home quite a lot... my family used to paint pictures like these... and I can feel the same power in them as well."

"Yes, the Niwa clan were one of the few who could do such a thing," Satoshi muttered under his breath.

"What?" Daisuke asked instantly.

"Nothing."

"But we just got a report on a monster attack," Akane slipped in, her eyes narrowing, "And we want you to come with us. You'll have to change, of course. Undergo a bit of undercover work so that no one can identify you."

"Eh? Monster attack?" the redhead repeated in a perplexed tone.

"You have encountered one once," Satoshi nodded, "They used to be a rare occurrence, but it seems that something between the different lines of worlds is broken, so we have to deal with these mutations of nature."

"...?" his mind not working, Daisuke could only blink innocently and stare at the other two.

"We'll explain it all later," the blue-haired boy finally decided to say after a moment of silence, "Now come on; I'm sure we can find something to fit you."

"I'll meet you at the entrance, then" Akane called before she moved off towards another room, "Try not to take too long, or we're bound to face the losing side, if not the dangerous clash between them, if you don't remember."

Satoshi merely nodded curtly at her words before getting up, hauling Daisuke with him in the process, "It won't be long."

She returned the single gesture and disappeared into the other room close by, muttering to herself in a low voice so that no one could understand her.

"Hiwatari-kun," as he found himself dragged once more, the smaller boy couldn't help but question Satoshi, "Why do I have to go? I mean... if this is a monster raid of some sort... isn't it a bit dangerous for me? I could get in the way or something..."

"You possess a power stronger than most," replied the taller boy coolly, "And the monsters seem to be getting stronger each time we encounter them, so it makes it harder for us to deal with them.

"You've fought them before?"

"Yes. Since the time life was created, darkness has been a part of it, as we all know," Satoshi couldn't help but shake his head slightly before continuing to speak. By this time Daisuke was clinging to his every word, "But there is definitely a reason for you coming with us, of course:

"The monsters are attacking someone, and we may need your help."

----

Yah, and now it's getting interesting, isn't it? Ah... what a life we live in... I'm having fun making everyone confused, are you having fun being confused??? Anyway, we're getting to more interesting parts (I think) so let's just see what we have here...

_-- Reviewer Replies!_

-Staryday: Let's just say that I have a soft spot for them... plus it saves me from making more names and descriptions and special abilities and all. Guess I'm a bit lazy. And sorry that it wasn't Dark, but three guesses what next! Still need to find a way to put Krad in there though... I guess I didn't really think of him when I started this, but... he'll be there. I can't leave him behind or he'll kill me. So many death threats... thanks for the review! And uh... a cookie? What type do you want?

-Clarence Hikari: Glad you liked it! Don't know where I got the idea, but it's there! Uhm... you can have this little plush thingy... don't know what it is... thanks for the review!


	5. Five

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 5 ---

"Put this on," Satoshi threw some articles of clothing unceremoniously towards Daisuke before digging through the wardrobe for more clothes. The redhead caught them while he continued to scan the room he was in; it seemed to be more of a warehouse of sorts and was about as interesting as his own room, with a few additional lights.

"I'll be changing in that room," at the sound of the blue-haired boy's voice, Daisuke jerked out of his thoughts. "Don't take too long, though."

"Okay..."

Once Satoshi had closed the door to another room that was close by, the redhead took a look at the clothes that had been given to him: Shirt and pants, both a pitch-black colour. Knowing that camouflage and secrecy was an important part of survival to those who lived under the shade of death, he pulled them on without complaint, all the while questioning what was going on.

(Someone is being hurt?) he thought. (Why does this nag me more than it should? It's like someone that I know is being attacked or something...)

_(You're probably right about that,)_ the voice inside his head agreed. _(There are still people you care out there, and monsters are very unpredictable beings...)_

(Do you know something about them?!) Daisuke demanded.

_(Only as much as you do.)_

The redhead was about to continue the conversation, but was cut short when Kain entered looking rather annoyed, if not angry.

"—never listens to what I say... always making me do all the stupid stuff..." he muttered under his breath, "why can't you do it yourself for once, damnit..."

"Ah... is something wrong?"

The boy jumped in surprise, giving Daisuke a glare before turning back to a calmer state of nerves, "I didn't know you were here."

"Sorry..."

"Nah, you don't have to be sorry," Kain sighed and flopped back into a large pile of unused clothes, "Who took you to this room, anyway? I thought you were supposed to be in your own room... back there... oh, wait." He frowned, recognition floating into his eyes, "Are you helping Hiwatari and Akane with that monster attack then?"

"Yeah," Daisuke nodded, "Aren't you coming then?" Kain shook his head and lay back as he gave the ceiling above him a long stare.

"I have stay here for the whole 'preparation' deal," he said in frustration, "I usually don't get this job, but clearly they think that they can handle it without any of my assistance. Maybe if they get beaten up badly they won't think like that again--"

"And you really think that we're going to respect you more just because of that?" Satoshi smirked as he opened the door, fully clothed in black and the light reflected off his glasses. "You have to remember who holds the strongest bonds in this little area."

"..."

"Or would you like Takada to know what you think?"

Kain suddenly looked flustered and worried, "Ah, no, that's okay. ... you mean Akane's going out this time?"

"Yes," the blue-haired boy seemed fairly amused with the other's reaction – while Daisuke stood on the sidelines, perplexed; "So if you want to see what's 'best for her', then keep to your own task and make sure that no one passes that barrier unless it's absolutely necessary."

The shorter boy gave a shaky nod, "Understood." He left hurriedly without a backwards glance, Satoshi watching after him with a neutral expression.

"Hiwatari-kun..." Daisuke started hesitantly, and withered slightly at the sharp glance he received, "Shouldn't we be going to meet Akane-san by now...?"

"Of course."

Leading the way, the two swerved through the winding tunnels until Daisuke found himself completely lost and only had Satoshi to rely on. All the while, though, to lighten the mood, the redhead found himself asking more questions than he intended.

"Hiwatari-kun, how long have you been going here and helping everyone?"

"About a year. When we started the entire organisation, as you may call it."

"'We'?" he blinked.

"Takada, Kain and myself. Pure coincidence that we met, anyway."

"You knew them for that long?"

"I knew Takada for about a year before that, and Kain by Takada. Those two seemed to know each other fairly well before that."

"Oh... does he like Akane-san, then?"

"If he does, then he hasn't told her yet," Satoshi smirked at this, clearly finding the situation fairly amusing and Daisuke fell into contemplation, which was short-lived.

"Ah, you guys took your time!"

A trapdoor was open as the blue-haired boy led the redhead out and a cold breeze greeted them almost instantly. After days of confinement inside a rather airless area, Daisuke couldn't help but gaze out at the sky, which was pitch black with a small number of stars scattering across it. After his escape, the scene seemed almost serene and he sighed.

"Did we take too long?" asked Satoshi.

"No, of course not," replied Akane's voice. "And it looks like you found Niwa-kun some clothes that actually fit him. I'm impressed."

"So you say."

Daisuke turned around to face the girl, and noticed that she was also wearing black pants, long gloves and a short-sleeved shirt, the buttons giving a dull gleam in the little light that was presented. Her hair had been pulled back into the usual plait and she flicked some stray bangs out of the way as she smiled at him calmly.

"Are you ready for this, Niwa-kun?" she asked calmly. She tugged at her glove for a moment and touched something strapped to her back.

"I... I guess..." he mumbled, noting the long belt that was slung across her shoulder and apparently held a thick sheath-like bulk. She nodded at him and then faced Satoshi for a moment as they conversed in low tones. While this was happening, Daisuke returned his attention back to the sky and calculated by the lack of moon showing in the sky that he had been in the base for most likely over a week.

(It felt like forever... since I was last out here,) he thought, almost wistfully. (I just can't get this feeling to leave me alone...)

Although he looked fine from the outside, inside his stomach was writhing uncomfortably and the back of his mind was screaming for him to hurry. The foreboding was unbearable for the redhead and he almost felt like yelling, but was cut short when he felt someone tug his sleeve. Returning to reality, he noticed that both Akane and Satoshi seemed fairly grim.

"Just then," started the blue-haired boy in an almost hostile voice, "did you just have a reaction?"

"Huh?"

"Not now," Akane said softly, and Satoshi let go of the smaller boy's sleeve. She turned to face Daisuke – who had no idea what had just happened – and gave him a brief explanation of what was about to happen: "We're splitting up to reach section T12, so you're with Hiwatari-kun. I have to go another way, just in case someone stumbled into the area, and I'll be with the hit squad, so you just keep with Hiwatari-kun all the time and try not to do anything too rash, okay Niwa-kun?"

"Uh... sure..." he frowned slightly.

"It'll be okay, I think," she frowned, once again tapping the bulky item on her back for reassurance, "But if this is what I think it is, I want you to make sure to keep control over yourself and what's inside you, okay?"

"Akane-san?"

"See you there!" avoiding making any eye contact with the concerned redhead, Akane ran off, instantly swallowed by the cover of darkness. Daisuke frowned at her tone of voice and wanted to call out to her – to stop her so that he could question her – but Satoshi shook his head firmly before leading the way across the darkened street.

"Don't mind her," he explained briefly, "Takada has a strange way with dealing with situations that aren't going in the right direction."

"But... she was really scared..." Daisuke said softly, jogging to keep up with the taller boy's stride in the process, "Whatever this is, it's scaring her... like she doesn't want anyone to know what... what this thing she's going to fight is."

"You felt that?" the blue-haired boy spun around to face him and nearly had the smaller boy run into him in the process. The redhead nodded.

"It's not like I'm telepathic or anything," he added hurriedly, "I could just... feel her emotions."

"And I thought I was the one cracking up," muttered Satoshi in slight amusement, if not slight concern. Daisuke blinked and gave him a queer look.

"Did you say something?" he asked curiously.

"No." the taller boy took a quick glance around him, scanning the entire area they were in, before dragging the redhead off. "We have to go this way. Shortest way around."

Daisuke nodded and followed – using the training he had received at an advantage as such.

---

"Keep your eye on the target..." hissed Zeike, "And don't waver too much otherwise you'll hit the wrong target..."

"I know that already," snapped a boy in a peevish manner as he held his hand out straight and aimed it at the large bulk, "I'm the one actually doing this, so stop annoying me already or I'll shoot something at you instead!"

"Ah... if little Clef getting excited, then?" asked Farea innocently, as he aimed his own power at the bulk as well, "Don't get your hopes up too high; I'll be the one to take this out for sure."

"Would you just shut up already?!"

"Well, you know--"

"Teammates fighting among themselves now, hm?" asked Akane as she jumped down onto the flat roof they were on and joined them calmly. "You know that we really can't be wasting time doing that. Oh, and Clef," she pointed at the bright spark of energy that was floating in front of him, "I think you can let that go now before it blows up on you."

"Oh! Ah..." the boy grinned sheepishly at the appearance of Akane and nodded, "Right..."

He let the stream of energy go - followed by a large beam of dark purple that was released by Farea – and both spells hit the bulk with a small explosion which followed after it. Zeike hit both boys at the same time before telling them off.

"Are you guys that stupid to build that much energy when someone's attack?!" he hissed, "The next time you do that I'll take care of you personally..."

"That's enough, Zeike," cut in Akane, as she judged the distance between themselves and the monster. All four were sitting at the top of an apartment building – which was seemingly deserted – and were peering over the edge, each getting ready for their own chance of attack. "But have you contacted Elena yet? Is the barrier up?"

"All clear," was the reply, "We dealt with that first, and she promised that everything is set up and completed. We're still waiting for word from base, though, but it looks like the only other life-form besides us is that one attacked."

"Well, they should be there soon," muttered Akane distractedly. She then turned to the other three of the 'hit squad' and sent out orders; "I want you to keep moving from building to building, keep out of sight and make sure that you don't send too much energy at the same time. I'm going off for a lone attack, but as soon as you see Hiwatari-kun, stop, okay? Keep an eye out for any broken lines as such and take care."

"Leave it to us!" replied Farea cheerfully, winking cheerfully through his mop of hair; "We haven't let you down yet, and we don't plan to now."

"Then get moving," snapped Zeike as he pushed the other boy. Akane grinned slightly as the three started to argue in low voices before moving off as quietly as possible – if it was – and then turned back to the bulk, which was looking right up at her.

"So," she whispered, "you think that this will stop us?"

Knowing that she would never get a reply to such a question – especially from a monster – Akane moved out of sight and did her best to keep her mind on what had to be done.

(Have to get close enough,) she told herself, (I have to make sure that they still have time... I have to stall it...)

Landing neatly onto a lower roof close by, she watched with faint amusement as the monster was his with another two small beams and roared in pain. Holding up one hand, she called up some energy and hit the beast from behind and then pulled back into the shadows, which blanketed over her.

"Gone...?" she whispered, as she felt something inside her tug at the back of her mind persistently, "No... not just yet, but..." she half closed her eyes for a moment before shaking her head. "They'll have to hurry or it might be too late... but I doubt it."

---

"Keep low," hissed Satoshi in front of Daisuke as they ran across the empty and deserted streets, making their way to the area indicated. The redhead nodded in acknowledgement – although he knew the other boy wouldn't be able to see him anyway – and tried to keep his mind in check: clearly the closer they got to the set area, the more agitated the power in Daisuke was.

"Um... what are these monsters like?" he asked in a low voice as he did his best to keep up with Satoshi at the same time. "I mean... what do they look like and what are their attack patterns as such?"

"Do you really want to know what their attack patterns are like?" the blue-haired boy gave a lifeless chuckle that was void of any sort of clear emotion. "These creatures have no heart or soul, are devoid of the life around them, and killing is their first nature. Do you know how many people have been hurt because of these things?"

"But... that's why you're trying to stop them..." Daisuke pointed out, "So people can stop being hurt by them. But they come... they come from another place, don't they?"

"Clearly. Another dimension as well."

"..."

"We're here. Keep low, though," Satoshi instantly flattened himself against a wall close by that was blanketed in the shadows and the redhead followed suit. There was a moment's silence while both boys took in the scene that wasn't far from them.

A large, shapeless creature was crouching in the middle of the street, obviously occupied with other plans and was clearly attacking whatever was there. Daisuke could almost see the evil aura that seeped out of it and shuddered uncomfortably, although the night was actually quite warm. Memories on his first encounter with a monster and his mother's concern flooded back to the redhead and he clapped a hand over his mouth, suddenly feeling unwell.

"The power's the same..." he whispered in a husky voice. "Just like the first time I saw one of them... and then my mother, she..."

"Ssh," the blue-haired boy turned his head slightly to face Daisuke and, despite the lack of light, he looked like he was trying to look reassuring. "If everything goes to plan, then it won't be long before this's over--"

He was cut short as a number of beams hit the monster with incredible force and the redhead almost jumped in surprise. Satoshi merely stated slowly; "That would be the hit squad. Come on, we haven't anymore time to dawdle."

Daisuke tried his best to calm his nerves, but was shaking so much that even a nod was unidentifiable. The taller boy – seeing this – shook his head.

"Just stay here and don't do anything too rash without thinking about it first," he commanded, pulling something from under the folds of his clothes, "And don't worry about us: we're professionals at this type of game."

('Game'?) the redhead thought weakly as Satoshi took off without waiting for an answer. (Do they really treat this sort of situation this lightly? But... something in the back of my mind is telling me that this isn't right... someone really needs their help and... the monsters are getting stronger every time they come here...)

He watched as the other boy wove in and out of the dark shadows that filled the entire area, while keeping on the monster's blind side. There was a flash of light that was almost blinding and Daisuke heard an inhuman roar and instantly tried to get his vision back. When he did, he nearly had a heart attack at what he saw:

Both Akane and Satoshi were standing side-by-side; the blue-haired boy holding a knife that glittered with an unknown force of power, while Akane wielded a long blade that reflected the light present like a glacier. But that wasn't what shocked Daisuke the most: he recognised the figure that was lying on the concrete pavement in a limp heap. Who else had such rich violet hair...

(DARK!) he screamed mentally, as he tried to run towards his cousin. But try as he may, his body wouldn't let him move at all, (I have to help him!)

_(Don't be so rash!) _the flame warned him, _(If you get in the way, that creature there will kill all of you, can't you see?!)_

(But he's hurt!) retorted the distressed redhead. (I can't leave him there!)

_(Watch and wait! He'll be fine, as long as you keep positive!)_ came the sharp reply_, (Now keep still or you won't see what's going to happen next!)_

Daisuke struggled with his internal emotions for a moment longer before giving in with a soft sob of grief. He sank down to his knees as he was forced to watch the battle unravel itself before him, all the while worried about his cousin's condition, as he could almost feel the older boy's soul wavering between life and death.

Akane held the sword crossways, treading across the concrete lightly, waving the blade slowly yet deliberately. Satoshi took the other direction, the knife calling upon a gleam of icy blue power, which almost seemed blinding beyond reason.

The two were split up and the monster tried to pounce on the blue-haired boy, oblivious to the sharp flick of Akane's blade behind it. The sharp steel cut the dark flesh and blood gushed out, making the watching redhead quite sick and he turned away, covering his mouth.

(Dark...) he thought.

---

"This monster has no real reflexes whatsoever," muttered Satoshi as he watched the blood spilling onto the pavement, "And has low defense. But it's offence..."

He jumped out of the way just as the creature spun around and hit the area he'd been standing just a moment before and created a small crater of sorts.

"... is beyond normal strength."

"Who doesn't know that?" asked Akane as she took in every word he said while still keeping her defenses up as much as possible. "And we need to get the others to get him out of here!" She didn't need to point at Dark to make her statement clear.

The blue-haired boy didn't answer and had to dodge another attack from the monster, which led to another crater to be formed close by the first one. Knowing that short-ranged weapons didn't work well on such creatures, he summoned energy and shot it at the monster, knocking it off its feet for a moment.

"Hey! Be a bit more careful!" yelped Akane as she was forced to dodge the crashing bulk and slashed downwards at the same time. "What are you trying to do, kill me?!"

Once again Satoshi made no attempt to reply her question and merely snapped; "You know weapons, even these, won't effect it. We have to combine our own strengths together here and now. We haven't any other choice."

"..." the girl looked at the floor, her sword touching the concrete lightly.

"It's the only way," he repeated, showing a large wound that neither one had noticed until then, "It might be slow and clumsy-looking, but if I hadn't moved out of the way in time..."

"... Zeike!" called Akane, tilting her head up and calling into the darkness around them, "It's an all out one, this time! You know the drill!"

"Roger!" replied the boy from somewhere in the background. She tucked her sword away for a moment and gave Satoshi a half-lidded stare. The monster was currently struggling to get up again, crimson blood completely staining the area, growling in anger.

"They just keep getting stronger... the line is breaking away," she said softly, power slowly surrounding her completely. "Hiwatari-kun... do we really have a chance with this?"

"We won't know until it happens," replied the boy as he called his own power. Akane nodded at his reply and then turned to face the monster that was nearly completely up. Somewhere in her line of vision she could locate where the Hit Squad was and knew that it wouldn't be long before either Clef or Farea cracked first and sent the attack before the time.

"... They're ready," Satoshi said suddenly, and she sighed.

(A vessel of power... a puppet to another...) she thought bitterly. "I'm ready for this."

The area – which had been magically blocked by Elena and her team – was suddenly filled with the chanting of two voices, both intertwining with each other, and the five separate wisps of power suddenly gathered together, engulfing the darkness and sealing it away for the time being.

---

"The power that stands between the line of dimension, life and death. The calling of another voice and another time; the power that does not belong in this space of time..."

Daisuke looked up unconsciously, the voices snapping him out of his own self pity. Something about the words brought him back to life, and he watched in amazement as the glowing around both Satoshi and Akane grew brighter and stronger with each second that passed.

"From deep within the soul, for another place to know, to be the power that calls..." the words trailed off into another language as the light became blinding and nothing could be seen. There was more chanting and then a large explosion that sent the redhead off his feet and crashed into a wall close by. Dazed, Daisuke could only look up as the sound and chaos subsided.

"Farea, you moron! You did it again!" yelled a voice some distance away. There was the distinctive sound of someone being hit and then a long chain of cursing filled the entire area.

"Akane! Satoshi!" a voice called and the shadows of two people approached the other two, who were standing where they were, staring at the spot where the monster had been with no emotion on either face. "What happened... how's he get here?!"

"Raine, could you and Ryu get him back to the base," replied Akane softly, "Celes will know what to do with his injuries."

"Okay."

The two moved off to carry the limp form away from the middle of the street and were soon out of sight. Silence filled the area as the redhead tried to get his body to move, since it was still not listening to him at all. After a while, Akane spoke.

"... Where's Niwa-kun?"

Daisuke gave a half-groan from his position and was instantly joined by Satoshi, who looked fairly concerned. Heaving the smaller boy up, he turned to face Akane, who looked fairly distracted as she gave the area a sharp glance.

"Will you be staying here for a little longer, then?" he asked coolly, and she nodded. He then turned his head slightly to face Daisuke. "Let's go, then."

The redhead fidgeted slightly for a moment, as he tried to get his mouth to work properly. "... Is... is he... is Dark... okay? He was..."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," replied Satoshi, "I think the magical reaction must have affected something in your body, so you should just get some rest. We'll make sure that your cousin lives. That's what you want, right?"

"Yeah..." (Dark... please be okay...)

---

"The magical barrier was broken completely this time..." Akane muttered to one of the craters she was currently peering into. "If we don't do something soon, then the evil will seep and cover the entire planet before we gat a chance to retaliate or even prepare."

"And what do you propose to do?" a portal opened behind her and a sturdy looking boy stepped out of it, flicking stray strands of energy away from him.

"There has to be a way to help Niwa-kun. He's the only one who can truly stop this evil from spreading across the land," she replied without looking up. "Have you seen how powerful the monsters have become now? Any longer and we'll be done for."

"You're always been like that, Akane," the male shook his head as he bent down next to her. "Is the power of Time truly showing you all of this?"

"You should know already," Akane got up abruptly, "And I don't want to see you shirking your duties either, Cless. Don't take too long. We need the information soon."

"Ah, I'm here to tell you something about the Niwa boy," Cless pulled out a thick wad of paper that was held in a deep red envelope. "Hopefully this information may help you on finding a way to access his power."

"We're not forcing him to do anything he doesn't want to do," she snapped, eyes flashing dangerously, "And looking into another's past is a violation beyond human rights. Cless, don't do that again, and don't bother the rest of us until you do something right."

She turned and walked off, joined by Elena and they disappeared, leaving the boy on his own, looking slightly peeved.

"Can't I do anything right anymore?" he asked to no one in particular, before walking off as well. Elena inclined her head slightly as the words reached her ears and she gave the younger girl a quizzical look before speaking out her thoughts.

"At least no one was killed this time," she stated.

"Hm..."

"And now all we have to do is find a way to control the power within us, no?"

"... It's not that simple, Elena," Akane said softly.

"Hm?"

"Nothing is ever that simple."

----

No, seriously, Dark is gonna kill me for doing what I did for him. Seriously, he would never allow himself to be knocked out that easily, right? Sorry for everyone who loves Dark, but I can assure you now that he ISN'T dead, I mean, you know what I mean. And Krad will be around sooner or later. Hopefully the next chapter, but... let's just see then.

I stink with the whole fighting part, as you can see. Not the most interesting... but I couldn't do any better. Daisuke should be playing a more active role the next time but, once again, I shouldn't be making any promises. Ah well, let's see those reviews...

-- _Reviewer Replies:_

-Staryday: Wahahahahahahha! Oh wait, you're gonna kill me as well, right? Please don't hurt me! (cringes and hides from sight) I guess I should've let Dark do something more interesting than lie on the floor, but I guess it's too late now. And they're together again, so there! Trust me with this though: Dark isn't weak in this story. Nah, you already knew that, right? He's just had a hard time... probabaly explain in next chapter. Pity him. Thanks for the review, though! Plush toy!

-Luthien: Uh... yeah, guess this means you like it... (scratches top of head) well, here's the next chapter. Hope it's okay.


	6. Six

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 6 ---

"Niwa-san, shouldn't you be asleep?"

Daisuke shook his head, not even trying to look up as Elena entered his room. She gave him a sympathetic glance as she did so and took a seat close by his bed. She fiddled with a piece of cloth in between her hands, looking for inspiration, as she tried to reason with the obviously depressed redhead.

"I know that you're worried about your cousin," she started softly. "But I don't think that it's right of you to try and hurt yourself this way."

"Hurt myself?" Daisuke gave her an ironic look for the first time, almost like he was wondering if she was trying to make fun of him, or make him feel better.

"I mean it emotionally, and mentally," she explained simply, flicking back her hair gracefully, "If you don't let your body rest, though, it will also end up to be physical as well. You can't do anything to help Dark-san at the moment, so please rest."

"But I have to see him!"

"Soon, Niwa-san. You will see him soon."

She left, closing the door behind her as usual, and the redhead flopped back on his bed, unable to get the images of Dark lying there out of his head. There had been blood everywhere, and he was so still…

_(You shouldn't be so negative,) _the voice in his head pointed out, _(It won't do you any good, so why bother?)_

(I'm just really worried... that's all,) he replied, having gotten used to the idea of him talking to himself, since there was a low chance of anyone being around, (Dark's the last link to my life, before it was ruined, and if he doesn't make it…)

_(Forever the optimistic one, aren't you?) _it mocked, although not in an insulting way. _(Maybe once you rest, you won't be this way. And you heard her, everything will be fine. All we can do now is wait.)_

(… Guess you're right.)

Daisuke laid back, the silence that surrounded him almost suffocating his lungs. He wanted to go outside, but knew that it would be impossible – as well as risky – to go outside after seeing a battle with a creature that wasn't supposed to be there. After a night of action, filled with the concept of magic, he really didn't know how much more he could take.

But somehow, even after all the explanations he had been given and what he had only seen hours ago, it didn't scare him, or even waver on his thoughts.

He didn't really understand, but Daisuke had a nagging feeling that he already knew about everything, if not more. And that in itself should have been disturbing.

And yet it wasn't.

The redhead shrugged the feeling off and closed his eyes, not wanting to find out more than he wanted, and reminisced on his friends and the good times they had had.

---

"What's his condition?" asked Kain, as he entered a dimly lit room that had been painted completely white. He shoved both hands in his pockets and flinched slightly when Celes turned to give him an even look of disapproval.

"He will be stable soon," she whispered, "But it will take some time for him to be completely sufficient to stand or even talk. That is, if I do not get anymore interruptions."

"Right…" he nodded, pretending that he understood, before taking a few steps out the way he came and practically ran off down the corridors. He only stopped when he was out of breath, and then trudged towards the meeting room, knowing that both Akane and Satoshi would be there to discuss the groups next move. Most likely with the Hit Squad as well, he reminded himself as he opened the door.

The talking hum that had filled the room stopped abruptly at the disturbance, but once he shoved his head in, they relaxed. Farea gave Kain the thumbs-up as he closed the door again.

"So, what was the answer she gave you?" he asked. He shrugged in reply and sat down on the floor, too lazy to pull up a chair to sit on.

"Something distant, as usual," he muttered in annoyance. "And then the usual 'as long as no one interrupts me' line. She's becoming a bit, what would you call it, bossy, if you know what I mean. It's weird."

"You mean more bossy than usual?" Clef asked, sniggering slightly now that they didn't have to do anything. "That's Celes for you. I'm just finding her an amusing person to annoy, and believe me, it's a lot more fun than trying to annoy some of the others, like Ryu. Man, he can hit pretty hard when he wants to."

"And so can I, if you even think about doing something that stupid again," Zeike said, arms crossed and eyes closed. "The kind of things you do, in or out of base, are beyond appalling and bound to get you in trouble one day."

"But not yet--" started the other boy in a sing-song voice.

"Kids these days," muttered Farea, looking annoyed slightly, although the impression was ruined as he grinned. "And how old is little Clef now?"

Clef spun around, looking as furious as he could, "What did you say--?!"

"So there's nothing stable about Dark yet?" Akane as Kain, as she and Satoshi continued to study a large piece of paper in front of them. "I know it's only been less than a few hours, but there should have been a change…"

"She wouldn't classify his state, really," he replied, "The closest I could get to was 'soon', and I don't think that helps much."

"But she's one of the best healers," Satoshi murmured, engrossed with whatever was on the paper. "It wouldn't be impossible to help him, and it wasn't like he was in any major condition that he could never recover from."

"Maybe she's hiding something from us," suggested Kain, as the Hit Squad began to argue among themselves. "It could be anything, you know."

"Celes?" Akane looked skeptical. "No way."

"Are you saying that I'm still just a kid?!"

"Are you saying that I said that? You just said it then."

"Hey! That's not funny, Far!"

"You've known Celes for longer than the rest of us," Kain tilted his head upwards at the ceiling, "So are you really sure that she wouldn't hide anything from you?"

"I'm not saying that," huffed Akane indignantly, "But she doesn't like being around a large number of people all the time, if you know what I mean. I don't know the causes exactly, but if you're suggesting that she might betray us--"

"You're thirteen! Get over it! The youngest of the Hit Squad, you should be proud of yourself, runt."

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that! Dammit, Far, I'm gonna get you one day!"

"I'd like to see you try."

"I'm not saying betrayal," he argued earnestly, "But if she really does know something that we should know, and hiding it from us…"

"But--"

"It's a possibility," Satoshi suddenly murmured, eyes still locked on the paper. Akane raised her eyebrows at him for a moment before speaking.

"Care to explain, then?"

"I'll show you one day, I tell you! I will!"

"Big talk, Clef, like to see you actually do it," Farea sniggered.

"I'll--"

"WILL THE TWO OF YOU JUST SHUT YOUR TRAPS ALREADY?!" unable to take it, Zeike snapped and ended up hitting both boys around the head. Hard. "Why can't the two of you just damn friggen' get along together for once?!" The two boys pouted and rubbed their heads as they complained to the leader of the Squad.

Satoshi turned away from the parchment and gave the Hit Squad an even leveled glare and they fell silent. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and sat back, Akane paying more attention to the ceiling than the people around her.

"Celes, we know very little about her," the blue-haired boy began simply. "Her past, before joining up with even you, Takada, is one that she never talks about, right?"

"Yeah, true," she nodded stiffly, mentally guessing where the topic of discussion was trailing off to. "I've only known her for five years and she really hates her past, by the sounds of it. Always avoids the topic."

"Not to mention she hates our plans of actually fighting against the Darkness that threatens to swallow us all," Kain added.

"She may know something about that, or she just wants to annoy us all," continued Satoshi, as if no on had interrupted, "the line between dimensions and worlds, as such, is a complicated situation for any of us to comprehend, and her healing magic is more advanced than most."

"So you're implying that she might know something about that and doesn't want to tell us about it," concluded Akane, "But she knows who and what we're fighting against, so why keep us in the shadows, where we might get attacked suddenly."

"The monster attack wasn't an accident either," muttered Zeike. Satoshi turned back to his paper and Kain sat up a little straighter, looking annoyed.

"Why doesn't anyone speak straight anymore?" he said, frowning. "Would you be so kind as to explain what the hell you're saying." The boy merely smirked at the temper and nodded towards the other two of his Squad and they stepped up smartly to attention, despite their throbbing heads. Clef and Farea took it in turns to talk.

"Elena stated upon our meeting her that the line wasn't broken and everything was functioning properly."

"This was because if it had been broken, there would have been a larger number of monsters and magic flowing through it."

"And the fact that the monster had an insanely large amount of magic capacity--"

"—clearly someone is tampering with the lines of our connection."

Zeike nodded, a hand passing through his dark green hair as they finished and flopped back into their seats. "The whole situation seemed wrong from the very beginning. Especially with the fact that only one person was attacked, and it's Daisuke Niwa's cousin. Doesn't that point to something, Akane?"

"Ah… of course," she nodded, legs crossed and head inclined. "That would explain a number of things, but we don't know that much about the gates or dimensions, let alone the lines in our own world."

"He's coming soon, so don't bother about it too much," Satoshi said in a distant voice, "Once we speak to him, we'll know how to plan out next move."

"Who?" all the other boys present stared at him with a questioning look of bafflement. Akane on the other hand merely blinked.

"You mean that he's actually coming?" she asked him, and he nodded, rolling up the paper and tucking it away.

"We have to talk, though," he told her, "The meeting's over, so just return to your tasks unless another warning is emitted."

The Squad were the first to leave, and Kain pouted slightly, his hair everywhere. "Why am I constantly missing out in our meetings? You two seemed to be the only joint leaders in this thing. I thought we were a threesome."

Akane stared at him blankly, "You hold as much hold in this group as the rest of us," she said bluntly, "so you have nothing to complain about. Really, Kain, I thought you knew that by now. And what we discuss… you'll know soon enough."

He looked hurt, but didn't say anything as he left the room, closing it. Satoshi shook his head at her and she sighed, sitting back. Minutes ticked by as silence began to fill on them and it was only when a chair scraped across the stone floor that Satoshi began to speak.

"Is it really okay for him to come?" he asked. "I really haven't told you much about his past, have I? But I can warn you that he can be very dangerous if you get on his nerves."

"We never really speak too much about our pasts," replied Akane, "We've all suffered one way or another, and besides, if your relative can really help us with this battle, I really don't see what's wrong with it; even if he does have a bad temper."

"You have nothing against Krad?"

"Not that I know of."

---

"Niwa-kun!" called one of the Harada twins. Daisuke turned and watched as she ran up to him: the one with long hair. He pondered for a moment, trying to remember her name. "It's Risa!" she said, seeing his face. "Just call me Risa, 'kay?"

The small redhead smiled weakly and nodded, "Risa… san?"

"Close enough," she smiled and took a hold of his wrist, "Come on! Don't you want to meet the rest of your classmates? Don't think that just 'cause I'm a girl, I don't know some of the cooler guys in our year!"

"Uhm…"

"Oi, Harada! What d'you think you're doing to Daisuke?!" bellowed Takeshi, materialising out of nowhere and grabbing Daisuke's other wrist. "Trying to drag him into one of your little girly projects, I expect?!"

"Saehara!" the young brunette pouted, stamping the ground with her foot. "How could you tell Niwa-kun such awful, awful things?!"

"Uhm…" Daisuke attentively tried to free his wrists from both holds, but was unable to.

"You're the girliest on in this whole building and you know it!"

"Hey! That's a mean thing to tell a lady!"

"Who's a lady?!"

"Are you saying that I'm not?!"

"What are you two arguing this time?" Riku couldn't help but grin at the position the three were in: both Risa and Takeshi were arguing, oblivious to the fact that Daisuke was the only barrier between the two from getting into a fight. "And I think you should let Niwa-kun go. If you don't, then his arms might fall off."

"But Riku--!"

"Harada, tell her off already!"

"Uhm…"

Riku gave an exasperated sigh as she pulled the nervous redhead away from the other two. "I don't mind you arguing, but stop dragging innocent bystanders into it!"

It wasn't long before the young brunette and Takeshi began to argue again and Daisuke fidgeted nervously, not knowing what to do. The older twin shook her head and led the redhead away from the scene of chaos.

"Don't mind them too much," she reassured him. "They love to argue with each other all the time. They'd make a great couple, don't you think?" she laughed at the thought and they both sat down. An awkward silence fell between them as a breeze picked up.

"So… Niwa-kun," started Riku after a moment of thought, "Do you like this school? There's a load of really nice people around, and I can tell that you'll have many friends."

"Really?" Daisuke asked, blinking at her.

"Yeah," she smiled slightly, "I can see it in your eyes, I think. I know this is kind of sappy for me to say, but your eyes hold this kind of message. Like… you'll listen to a person when they're worried and when you make friends, it'll be for forever and you'll never betray them or anything." She blushed as the words left her mouth and ducked her head. "I'm sorry!"

"No, it's okay," the redhead smiled and patted her lightly on the shoulder, "I think… I know what you mean. And you're the same, Harada-san, I can see it too."

"Eh? Really?"

"Yeah," he replied, nodding. "You can make some really close friends and you already have, haven't you?"

"Guess… you're right," she looked up and held out a hand. "Friends?"

"Friends." He took her hand.

---

When Daisuke came back to his senses, Riku's words still rang in his ears. They had become friends, naturally, but it had been years before either one of them had admitted to liking the other stronger than just that bond. But now that he was being chased, he couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen to her, and all the others he had come to trust.

He pulled the covers of the blanket over his head, drowning out the deep sorrow that tried to drag him away from life and remembered about Dark. Bolting up, he looked around the room, wondering if he was allowed to wander where he wanted: in many ways, the base seemed to be like a strict school with one too many rules that had to be followed.

As he got out of bed, wondering what he was going to do next, the door opened and Satoshi entered, looking as calm and composed as ever.

"Awake now?" he asked, and the redhead nodded in reply. "Elena told us about you being worried about Dark, so I'm supposed to take you there."

"Do I have to be accompanied?" Daisuke raised an eyebrow, the innocent question filled with annoyance, which the other boy understood.

"No, you really don't have to," he said simply, "But since you don't know the way, it would be the right thing to do. I believe that you already remember the way out of his base, then?"

Surprised, the redhead nodded, "Why?"

"Your cousin, the one known as Dark Mousy, is a well-known thief," Satoshi explained as they left the room, "A Phantom Thief, as I'm sure you know of: surprising that he was able to slip past all security in broad daylight as well, as a matter of fact. You would have faced the same training and drills, Niwa."

"How… how do you know about the Phantom Thief part?" stuttered Daisuke, suddenly looking nervous, "No one knew about it… except for really close family members. And Dark's parents were killed when they thought they had magic potential…" his voice wavered and then trailed off into the corridor, passing by Leah and Elena, who were deep in conversation.

"I was part of the police force assigned to catch him," the blue-haired boy shrugged, "Even though we never caught him, I found out the connection."

"When?"

"Only last night. Not that it makes much more of a difference now. Seeing that he is one being chased, there's no point handing him over to the police. Anyone who gets sentenced to death by those sadistic bastards are bound to be worse then one thief who steals works of art that possess magic in them."

"But is Dark really okay now?" pressed the redhead. "When I saw him being attacked by that monster outside… why was it there in the first place?"

"We still don't know yet," admitted Satoshi, opening a door and entering it, "Zeike, the one with green hair, believes that it might have been done on purpose, but we need further investigation on the entire matter. And your cousin is fine. He hasn't woken up, though, but Takada will see to that part of the operation."

"… You sound like you're cutting him up."

"Celes is the Healer, but Takada holds the most magic potential. She told you about her possession of the power of Time?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't very clear."

"She'll explain it to you one day. She needs to explain it to all of us."

"What?"

"There are more things about her that we don't know than the whole group put together, and we all hold our own secrets. She's the one who speaks less off her past than anyone else."

---

Celes looked up as Akane opened the door and entered the room where Dark lay on a bed, light filling the room. The Priestess raised an eyebrow in question but made no attempt to tell the younger girl to get out. Out of all the group members, Akane and Satoshi were the only two ever to break out of the rules that had been set for the safety of the group: even Kain wasn't as reckless as the two put together.

"Is something wrong, Akane?" she asked softly, taking a step away from the limp form. "I am sure that I told Kain that I need all my concentration for this…"

"You did, of course," nodded the redhead calmly, "but it looks like it's taking longer for Dark to recover than any other serious injury that most of our suffers within a week."

"He does not hold any magic potential," replied the Priestess, "so it is harder to heal him."

"Isn't it the other way around, though?" Akane shot back, "When one has no magic potential, then it's much easier to heal them, but with too much, it's a basic spell and a few days to rest. I think I know that much, Celes."

Celes bowed, "My apologies. But what is it that you need?"

"I'm taking it from here," came the command, "I think Zeike hurt Far and Clef again, so why don't you check on them?"

"Very well."

Akane watched as Celes left the room, closing the door behind her. She frowned, well aware that the Priestess was indeed hiding something from them and wouldn't say it, even if it cost her her life. But the entire situation and current string of events seemed more suspicious than usual.

It was either betrayal, or the darkness and evil within the world was already beginning to make its move, or the knowledge of something that was vital to their safety, but didn't want to tell them.

Neither option was a nice one, and the young girl pushed it away, looking over to the still form of Daisuke's cousin. He skin was pale and the light pink scars across his face and arms weren't the most pleasant to look at. His eyes were closed and the mess of violet hair was strewn everywhere on the pillow.

Akane pulled a seat and sat down next to the bed, at the same time pulling out something tucked under her shirt. A small pendant like object was freed from the folds of her clothes and she allowed it to hover over Dark.

'The evil is always stirring… in all of us,' she thought, 'the pollen of death and despair is forever passed from person to person, unknown to us all. An evil that has tried to destroy us before… and failed miserably, by a number of people who no longer want to remember the past.' She looked down at Dark.

"Do you know what I mean? Do you remember that time? Black Wings…"

---

Daisuke watched as Satoshi knocked on a door before opening it. He blinked a couple of times, wondering why the whole 'base' and 'group' was as confusing as the winding corridors of where they lived and why everyone kept everything to themselves.

(If they hide so much, then how are they supposed to trust themselves, let alone each other?)

_(It's all in the mistrust of others, yet the threatening of darkness and evil is enough to pull them together. And people are trying to kill them, remember.)_

(But there's just so much that we need to find out… it may be the only way to get rid of this evil that threatens to surround the world.)

_(Ah, they'll find out one day. Or we can tell them. Dark would agree.)_

(Dark…)

"I hope we didn't disturb you," Satoshi said, not sounding the least apologetic as he saw Akane sitting on a stool close by Dark's bed. "Celes didn't look too happy when we passed by her. New expression you made her do, Takada. What did you tell her this time?"

Akane didn't turn but answered nevertheless, "She was taking her time in the healing process, and she said that he had no magic potential, which was clearly being emitted from his body since the time Raine and Ryu brought him here. She's been more… quiet of late as well. Maybe Kain was right about her…"

"So… will Dark be okay?" asked Daisuke timidly, as he allowed his feet to drag him in, not really wanting to see what condition his cousin was in. "I mean…"

"He's fine, just… not awake," she hesitated for a moment, "I think the monster drained most of his power when it was attacking him, so he couldn't fight back. He lost a lot of blood as well, so it wasn't the best of conditions to start off with. And there's this creature here." She turned to show them a small rabbit-like creature, which smiled up at them and made a noise that was close to 'kyu'. Upon seeing Daisuke, it leapt out of her hold and onto the other redhead, happily taking residence in his hair.

"With!" he exclaimed, pulling the creature away from his head and taking a look at it. "Are you okay?!"

"Kyu kyu kyu!"

"…" Satoshi couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"I thought he belonged to the Niwa clan," Akane nodded and indicated them to take a seat, "Since he has none of those, well, what we call 'viral waves' that usually get emitted from monsters as such, and he was worried about Dark as well."

As they took seats close by the bed, With hopped back over onto Daisuke's head and the redhead did his best not to look at a basin close by that was filled with rags that were stained with blood. Akane had a necklace hovering over Dark's head and was muttering a few words. The pendant that hung from it glittered slowing, forming a dim light around it as she continued her chant.

"Niwa-kun," she said after a while, "I know that you might find this crazy, but… I want you to finish the spell for me."

"What? How am I supposed to do that?!" spluttered Daisuke, and she smiled.

"I know you can do it, that's why. And if you Dark to recover faster, than it's necessary. Blood relations are better healers than even the best of healers."

"…" the redhead hesitated for a moment, but it wasn't long before he had come to a conclusion that was so obvious that it wasn't funny. He went over to Dark slowly, nervous, while Akane stepped back from her position.

"Are you sure it's okay to let him go?" muttered Satoshi from the corner of his mouth, eyes glued to the still lump on the bed. "We don't even know the strength of his own power, and it looks like it's still growing."

"I trust him, and I know you do as well," replied Akane, smiling, "But this is just healing, so I'm sure everything will be fine."

"You always say that." He couldn't help but shake his head slightly and looked down at his watch, "We don't have much time either."

"Don't worry."

Daisuke knew that the other two were watching him and the feeling of uneasiness in his stomach tightened considerably. Taking a couple of deep breaths, he made a mental calculation on Dark's current status.

(No internal injuries… external injuries already healed… stamina lost due to lack of blood… he's… still awake…) as the analysis came back to him, the redhead was suddenly unhinged due to the fact that he was able to sense it and almost wanted to run off to be sick. (How did I--?!)

_(It's one of your abilities,) _explained the voice patiently, _(You never were the type of person to vessel dangerous magic. But even then it would be dangerous…)_

(Are you saying that me knowing this is natural?)

_(What else should I be saying besides wake up Dark?)_

(Right, right…)

Once he regained his train of thoughts, Daisuke raised his hands and began to chant softly, creating a gentle aura around the palm of his hands. He didn't really know what he was getting himself into, but the voices in his head and the flame that forever flickered inside of him reassured his wavering conscience and he continued.

'I knew it…' thought Akane grimly, 'His power…'

"It surpasses that that we know of," finished Satoshi, reading her thoughts. "So if someone else was to mislead him… it won't happen."

"Really now?" she raised an eyebrow.

"I'll make sure of that."

"Heh."

They stopped their conversation as the spell Daisuke had been conjuring suddenly seemed to explode and engulf the entire room.

"Everything has to be done big, doesn't it?" Satoshi asked ironically.

"It's all part of the process."

---

Leah was talking to Ryu about the plans of the balance and the source of power when they were interrupted by an alarm close by. The noise in itself wasn't overwhelmingly loud, but the noise was enough for them to leave the conference room they had been using and meet up with Raine and Zeike, Farea and Clef tagging along.

"Who do you think it is?" asked Raine, as she took Ryu's hand for reassurance. "I mean, very few people know of our location, if it's someone who found a way and wants to hurt us--"

"Won't happen," Zeike muttered, cutting her short. "You see, the entire base is protected, with Elena's own power and that means that no one with magic at all can really enter without getting knocked out cold for the next few weeks. Whoever it is, they set the alarm off to a minimum standard of danger."

"Care to explain, oh brother?" Leah asked, bouncing around and toying with a whip she carried with her all the time.

"This person probably doesn't want to harm us."

"Either way, how they got in will have to be dealt with," Ryu said softly as they turned a corner and made their way towards the entrance. "Even those with magic can't really been drawn towards base unless they are aware of it."

"But Daisuke managed to get pretty close," Farea pointed out. "Does that mean anything?"

"He's a nut?" suggested Clef.

"No, kiddo, you're the nut here."

"What?!"

"Shut up…" Zeike's eyebrow twitched. "Or do I have to do something more drastic to get it into your thick skulls?"

"… Who is it?" asked Raine softly, as they reached the final corridor. The trapdoor was shut and a single tall figure stood in the shadows, as if hoping not to be seen. Ryu nodded in her direction, and, with a sigh, the girl raised her free hand.

---

"Dark! Dark! C'mon, answer me Dark!" Daisuke begged. The light had finally subsided and the now desperate redhead was practically shaking him. Satoshi muttered a few words under his breath about a waste of time and Akane was frowning.

'The spell worked,' she thought, "So that means…"

"Dar--"

"You're too loud, Dai-chan. Give it a rest."

The reply caught Daisuke off guard and he fell, blinking stupidly while his cousin sat up, rubbing his head gingerly. "God, you're even louder than your mum when you're worried."

"How-when-you--" spluttered the redhead, pointing a hand at Dark while With 'kyu'-ed happily. "Dark! When did you just--"

"Not too long ago," the older teen gave him a lopsided grin before lying back down again, "I was 'bout to go back to sleep, but man, you're such a persistent kid when you want to be… looks like you managed to live as well, huh?"

"Yeah…" Daisuke managed to get up and sit on a stool, bending slightly out of relief, "I was just worried that I'd lost you… like everyone else…"

"Damn sadistic bastards," Dark spat out at the roof in disgust, "Why can't they just leave everyone alone? If anything, they should be the ones to die…" he sat up again, for the first time noticing his surroundings, "Where the hell am I?"

"Uhm… I don't know WHERE we are exactly… but I know we're safe here…" Daisuke blinked and gave Satoshi and Akane questioning looks. "Uh… little help?"

Satoshi pushed his glasses up, "To put it simply, you're underground, away from the 'world above'. Since you are being chased, it doesn't seem sensible to run around when people not only want to burn you on the stake but put you in jail at the same time, Phantom Thief Dark."

"Huh, who's the creep?" Dark sat up again to stare at the blue-haired boy, "And how did he know—oi! You're that creepy commander that's been trying to catch me all this time!"

Daisuke placed a hand on his cousin's shoulder to stop him from lunging out of bed, "Dark, it's okay. Hiwatari-kun and Akane-san helped you… and me."

"Oh…" he smirked, "What'cha gonna do after that, of great commander? Place me in jail? It wouldn't work anyway." He then turned to face Akane, "Nice to meet ya."

"…" Satoshi's eyebrow twitched before he chose to answer, "There would be no point to placing you in jail now. You've been sentenced to death for 'acts of helping witchcraft and other dangerous forms of inhuman activities' so why would I place you there?"

"Sharp one, huh," muttered the Thief.

"Well, he is a part of us as well, although no one knows it," Akane explained patiently, "I'll explain about this place soon. But--"

"—What happened to you first, Dark?" finished Daisuke.

"Kyu! Kyu!"

"Argh… better get it over and done with then," Dark propped himself up into a more comfortable sitting position before starting his own explanation. "Well, it was about a few hours after I'd gotten you outta that hell hole, Daisuke, and you know that I was distracting them so…"

---

"_Oi! He's getting away!"_

"_That child of satan?!"_

"_Who did it?!"_

_Dark stuck his tongue out, face pulled into a ridiculous position. "You freaks know nothing about this, do you? He didn't hurt anyone!"_

"_Who the hell are you?!"_

"_Are you one of them as well?!"_

"_Get him!"_

_With a smirk, the dark-haired teen leapt of the window sill he'd been using as a support and landed lightly on the ground. With, who'd been sitting on his back, made an annoyed noise and he shrugged, listening to the sounds from the room with amusement._

"_Just let 'em come out here," he muttered to himself confidently, "Give him some time before leaving ourselves." He pulled a card out of his pocket. "What do I have to steal tonight anyway?"_

"_Hey! It's that other one!"_

"_Get him!"_

"_What?! But the door's on the other side of the house, dammit!"_

"_I don't care! Smash the window, but don't let him get away!"_

"_Ah… that one? Large piece of canvas, but really nice picture, nevertheless," Dark told With, who wagged his tail in reply. "I'm counting on you, okay?"_

"_Kyu!"_

"_Ah! You're still here?! Think you're smart, do you?" a man help up what looked like a pitchfork, "Well, you won't be around for long!"_

"… _He's got some serious issues."_

_Dark shrugged before running off, only fast enough to keep a good distance from him and the people who were chasing him – clearly forgetting that Daisuke had also escaped. Rain began to fall slowly, pattering against the concrete as he led them away._

---

"How long were they actually chasing you for?" Daisuke asked instantly, worry etched on his face, "You're not sick, are you?"

"I'm just fine," Dark shook the pity away with a wave of his hand. "But at least you got away safe, that was the only thing that mattered. What would I tell your parents that I let their own son die when he hadn't done anything wrong in the first place? After that, I just went to do my job. Oh yeah… you weren't there, were you, creepy boy?"

Satoshi's glasses flashed at the name calling, "What you were sent out to steal wasn't magically altered, so there was no need for me to be there."

"…" Dark frowned.

"That was the same night you found Niwa-kun as well," Akane pointed out as she fiddled with something in her hands. "So at least there was an upside to that."

"Anyway, the next few days went by fine, although there was no sign of Daisuke anywhere. At least it meant that he got away safely. Anyway, without Emiko to help with the notes, I kinda dispersed from stealing and I was pretty upset about the loss of the Niwa family, and the fact that I was by myself… until those creeps found me again and tried to flush me out with… some rather dangerous weapons, if I remember correctly.

"I left, pretty much, but that that huge whatchamacallit attacked me and the guys who'd been chasing me. Ugh, I don't think you would want to see what that monster did to the other guys, jerks as they were, and then everything went black for me."

"So the monster didn't consume you…" Satoshi said slowly, "How odd…"

"So here I am, and I won't be leaving anytime soon for sure!" laughed Dark with the usual air of confidence.

Questions still remained inside Daisuke's mind, and he was about to question his cousin further but was interrupted by the door opening. Raine and Ryu entered, both looking fairly annoyed or at least bemused as the looked over at the three sitting.

"Sa-to-shi…" started Raine in a sing-song voice, "Did you, by any chance forget to tell us that we were going to have a visitor?"

"…" Satoshi raised an eyebrow, not moving.

"He says that he has a meeting with you, but he could be playing with our minds," Ryu included grimly.

"Let him in," Akane said, waving a hand at them cheerfully, "Don't the rest of you have work to do at the moment?"

The Hit Squad and Leah, who had been hiding behind the posts of the door, gave up on spying and dispersed, muttering about how unfair it was that they had to leave. Raine and Ryu followed after them, but not without Ryu glaring at someone that they couldn't see for the time being.

"Who is it?" asked Daisuke, looking puzzled, "They didn't look too happy about the entire situation."

"Someone who can help us," replied Satoshi, as the person entered. Before anyone could open their mouth or before the person could even introduce himself, Dark beat them to it.

"Bloody hell! Krad…?!"

----

Whoo-hoo! It's a wonderful way to end the chapter. AND Krad still isn't there properly... obviously he'll be there in the next chap, if I ever get it done so. Ugh... Dark's explanation, well, that might be the full explanation, but really, there could be more. Wait, there WILL be more, hopefully. Just that Dark's hiding it. And it's good to keep him as much in characer as he can be. Honestly, who doesn't like the Great Phantom Thief Dark? And Krad, well, he'll be whoever he is. And Krad is related to Satoshi by... cousin, perhaps? Not direct blood relations, but close enough, I guess. And Kain doesn't get that much respect from the other two, does he? Oh well, pity him. Pity him. Hope everything makes sense, it was insanely long compared to my other chaps (only by four pages though), and, uh... yeah. Don't know when the next update will be.

--_Reviewer Replies:_

-Staryday: Well, as long as someone's reading this, I don't care how long it takes you to review. :) And yeah, as long as it doesn't get insanely boring, I really don't mind typing this. Unlike SiD... (-shakes fist- damn you!!) Well, Dark's up already, to say the least, and he won't be in that position again, hopefully, so yeah. Gotta love him. And Krad? Well, he'll be 'good' so to say, but with horrible temper (hahaha... he's gonna kill me) who cares? He'll be better, and he won't be trying to kill Daisuke or anything. And Dark knows him already. (haha...) Why? Well, you can guess. Thanks for the review! And the encouragement!


	7. Seven

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterisations, one too many new characters to contend with.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 7 ---

Krad Hikari merely stood amidst the silence that had followed after the Thief's exclamation. He was wearing what looked like a suit – although not as formal – and he had long golden-blonde hair that had been tied up in a ponytail. Satoshi got up.

"I can see that you made it here safely in the end," he greeted him courteously. The blonde turned his gaze to the blue-haired boy and nodded politely. As this was happening, the other three present didn't move or say anything, until Akane accidentally scrapped her chair against the floor with a loud and annoying noise as she stood up to close the door.

"…" Daisuke cast an uneasy glance at the newcomer – he wasn't too sure, but something in his senses told him to be wary of such a person – but was cut short as Dark tried to get himself out of bed. Regaining his composure, he pushed his cousin back down, "Dark! You're too weak to get up!"

"… So, it really is you," the blonde muttered, "Pity, I thought you had already died after that one…" he stopped himself as he gave a glance at the minors around him, "incident."

"Well, I'm alive obviously," came the somewhat-cheerful reply, "So what brings you here then?"

"You, in particular, don't need to know," Krad said, turning away to direct his attention back to Satoshi, "I think we should talk in a different room."

Dark was looking indignant, but Satoshi ignored him and nodded, "Takada, Niwa-kun, would you like to come?"

Akane nodded, and after casting a quick glance at the Thief, Daisuke agreed as well, although still unnerved by the blonde's presence. He hated whatever power he had that made him this paranoid, but then again, he would still be scared of said blonde by just appearance. He looked too… superior. Dark seemingly gave up for the time being, but muttered to Daisuke to tell him everything that was spoken and the redhead promised before they left the room to some other place.

---

'_Naught but when I hear your voice, you calling to me, I know that this is the truth. A truth that I failed to believe in, a truth I just didn't want to face. Something about it always scared me, and I just didn't want to admit that I was wrong…_

'_I know that I lost you because of this, and I know that you despise me for all of this, but I couldn't do anything about it… I was always a coward. I always ran away when it was too hard for me. I didn't want to see you hurt, and that was my greatest weakness…_

'_I hid my identity, I lost my sense of self, I sacrificed it all to try and start again. I tried to forget all about you, I tried to make it seem like a dream, but it didn't work… it never did… and I was always the one to pay the price for my stupidity. This is the truth I came to hate, the one I came to hide from. The one that I wish that it hadn't been…_

_Dark, I will always remember you…'_

Dark frowned, looking at the piece of paper that had miraculously survived even after the monster attack. It was the last words that someone had given him before death, before leaving this world. If it really was death, he may never forgive her, but if it was to another world to try and start again, he could only wish he the best of luck.

What could one tell their own sister?

---

Along the way to the meeting room, they passed Kain who was instantly invited to join them and Satoshi closed and bolted the door behind him.

"Just to stop people interrupting us," he explained to Daisuke, who had raised a questioning eyebrow. "You don't know how often that happens. It really is crowded in this base so we have to make sure that privacy of sorts are still in check."

"But that's not the point." Akane added, as they took seats around the table, "The thing is, many people do live here, but we have to keep an eye out for those who may be in danger but just don't know it yet. It's a hard process that no one wants to be left with, but it's necessary."

"So does that mean that there are bases like this all over the world?" asked the redhead, unable to help it, and Kain nodded.

"We try and keep connections with the other bases, but it's pretty hard from where we are and where they are, so we try and keep to ourselves unless it's insanely urgent."

"Then… how about the monster attacks?"

"That's why Krad's here," Satoshi replied simply, "he knows more about this then all of us put together and this is the exact reason I called him here."

"?"

"It's simple, really," the blonde said calmly, not really making eye contact with anyone, "The line and dimensions are completely distorted and destroyed, which makes it easier for the monsters to enter this particular world."

"Completely?" repeated Akane, frowning. Kain seemed to be in the same position. Krad nodded at the two, which Satoshi seemed to remain indifferent as the redhead was in deep thought.

"It may just be here, but I am sure that the other bases are having the same problems. Monsters that appear occasionally not only put a strain on one's energy, but it also risks their lives due to the…" he smirked slightly, "Witch burnings, so to speak."

"Is there any way we can contact them at the moment?" asked Kain.

"Yeah…"

"I'll go and check on them--"

"No, I'll do it," Akane cut in, getting up and patting his shoulder slightly, "Tell me the rest later. Okay, I'm off."

"…" Daisuke watched as the door closed amidst the silence that followed in her wake. "Is she hiding something from us?"

"Either that or she's worried," Satoshi remarked, one eyebrow currently raised. "Takada has a strange habit of leaving in the middle of meetings if something else is on her mind."

Krad coughed slightly to regain attention, "As I was saying, the dimensions are completely distorted, so the troubles have only just started. It looks like you may have a long battle on your hands if you choose to continue it… or allow the monsters to massacre the rest of the human race. Very few, as we know, can even ward off a demon, let alone a monster with ten times the power."

"We're going to continue fighting, of course," the blue-haired boy replied, looking over at the blonde coolly, "because if the monsters take over the… surface, then there is no way we will be able to deal with them once they get under control. I'm assuming that your either here to help us a bit, or to mock us for our futile attempts."

"So you say, Satoshi, so you say. If I wanted to die, then I would allow it, wouldn't I?"

"…" Daisuke shifted nervously in his seat, and Kain leaned over to whisper in his ear; "Those two are really alike, aren't they? Satoshi has always been a creep, but to see someone just like him…" The redhead shrugged slightly at the comment but didn't bother to reply.

"Well, in any case, we need you to at least check to whether our lines are being tampered or not," Satoshi finally concluded, "We're not asking you to risk your ass on our behalf."

"Be a little more polite to your older brother," Krad hit him lightly over the head, "And I'll help, if you really need it. I have some… experience with such problems."

"Well, in any case," the blue-haired boy got up, "We have to go now." It wasn't long before the two were gone, leaving Daisuke and Kain in the empty room, the candles that filled it with light spluttering slightly from too much work. The redhead inclined his head at the thought as Kain hit the table in frustration and annoyance.

"Can't they just explain something properly for once?" he burst out, "Why are they always so… secretive, of whatever it is!?"

"Well, I think I'll go check on Dark…" Daisuke murmured in distraction, leaving the fuming boy on his own. The corridors and halls seemed to be more deserted than usual, and the redhead quickened his pace somewhat. He had a feeling that he would never truly get used to the atmosphere that was created by this underground base, and only wanted to be outside again. But he had lost almost all of his family, the last link being Dark. If they were to risk their life on something like living among the normal people… he didn't want others to suffer.

And his friends… they were probably worried… it was little wonder, but he couldn't help but feel guilty since, if they were being interrogated to his whereabouts… He shuddered.

(I'll see them again… I know I will…) he told himself.

_(That's the spirit,) _his other voice encouraged, _(Once we get rid of the monsters, convince those idiots that there's nothing wrong with us, we can go back to normal lives.)_

(…) Sometimes the voice could be so… weird, Daisuke decided as he opened the door to Dark's room.

---

"Are you absolutely certain to helping the rest risk their lives to rid of the monster swarms?" Krad asked Satoshi, who was actually his half-brother. "They seem to be capable of taking care of themselves, and I don't think either one of our parents will be impressed with us fighting with the enemy…"

The two were walking home, the lamps emitting their weak orange light over the streets across the deserted land. The night was strangely clear and the moon was on it's half-turn. Stars glittered in the sky and there was no breeze, leaving the air around them almost… repulsive.

"We both hold the same blood as they do, the same fate if we were ever discovered," the blue-haired replied in a hostile way, looking at the concrete below, "Our parents would disown us, or hand us over to those who want to kill us. There is no other way, Krad, and you know that if you don't help, we'll be discovered sooner or later." Silence. "… And how is it that you know Dark?"

"I have my reasons," the blonde shrugged, "And the obscurity of being against those with magic potential is ridiculous. This is the only reason to why I'm helping you know, Sato."

"You just don't want to be burnt on the stake."

"… You really don't know, do you?"

"What?"

"Those who don't get killed in the process will most likely be handed over to psychotic and sadistic scientists."

"…"

"Either way, we can't let that happen."

"I guess you're right about that. Some people will go to extreme lengths to fulfil their sick, twisted dreams of world domination or revenge."

"And about that Takada girl…"

"What about her?"

"What was she up to, when she left?"

"Who knows. Takada does some of the most unexpected things, so I wouldn't hold it against her."

"She knows something."

"Of course. But we have to wait for her to talk. Then it could be too late."

"… Do you think you should trust her?"

"She may be the only one to trust at the moment."

"Hm, foolish brother…"

"What are you implying there--"

"Oh… nothing. What is her first name?"

"Akane."

"Hm…"

---

"Hello? This is Azmuno base for the condemned. Takada online," Akane spoke into a little microphone. The area was more advanced than the rest of the base, electronics actually used and it looked out of place in comparison of the rest of the base. Cords and computers lined the walls, yet the entire room was deserted, save for Akane.

It was night, and everyone had gone to sleep, no doubt, although they knew of the dangers that were coming their way, and it seemed that only the redhead truly knew the horrors that would soon come into play.

It was one of her many talents, and she hated it.

She hated having to do these types of things, and, more importantly, she hated watching the events progress, because most of the results were the type of scenarios that needed to be ignored and forgotten, rather than seen and remembered.

She hated the fate and the powers that had been passed onto her.

A voice cackled in reply, jerking the girl out of her musings, "Unable to connect. Error between connections. Please repair all problems before transfers. Repeat--" She sighed and cut off the error warning. So there was no way to make contact with the other bases, unless they wanted to walk around amongst those who wanted to kill them: Akane wasn't worried in particular about her own fate involving such a thing, but if others were to follow and noticed…

Tapping a few keys, she got another connection, "Reporting; Akane. Come in…"

"Yes? This is Dimension 8, Cless speaking." There was the distinctive sound of someone yawning and, in the background, snoring. "What's the matter this time—I haven't got any information you want that isn't blackmail material, so--"

"I need to talk about the lines and the barrier," she interrupted, "Can you give me anything on that yet? We need it now."

"Oh, I don't know…" muttering and typing, "I'm more of a stealth guy that does things that others don't like. Wait… I'll get Cecilia on, alright?"

"Alright."

While the change was being made, Akane fixed up the connection, allowing the picture before them to form, not just the sound waves and connection files that were up there all the time. It wasn't long before a girl appeared, putting on headphones, her glasses slightly askew.

"Yes… Cecilia here," she beamed when she noticed who was on the other line, "Akane! It's been a while, hasn't it? Have you decided yet?"

"Sorry, Cecilia, but I haven't had time to think of that since the time I got back here," she replied, inclining her head, "But you seem to be doing well as well. Has Cless been giving you a hard time, by any chance?"

"Actually, he hasn't. So, what was the question? Cless seemed to have a hard time telling me."

"The lines and the barrier that stops them from breaking," Akane explained, "Can you tell me anything about it since the last attack we had here. You should know when, since Cless visited me right after that with… unwanted information."

"Aah… yes, we're analysing the situation at the moment. Nothing too clear, but either someone is tampering with it, or the barrier has finally hit its peak," the girl's voice had lowered to something more serious and she was frowning.

"I see…" she thought for a moment, "so… when do you think you'll have results?"

"I'd say… three days. Is that okay?"

"Perfect. Okay, see you later then."

"Sure. Come and visit some time as well!" The connection broke off and was left with a static screen. Akane dropped the headphones back onto the desk and sighed. Rubbing her temples for a moment, she muttered a few words under her breath before leaving the room.

She really wasn't looking forward to the results. And there was still that thing about Daisuke…

---

"He runs, he runs, he runs and—he runs into a wall!" yelled a voice excitedly, followed by a loud crashing noise that served the purpose of the commentary. There was a groan of pain, and then the shriek of annoyed vengeance.

"FAREA! What the hell was that for?! You should have warned me about that first!"

"Hey, it's much more fun this way. Go on, Shiro, tell him again. That was great commentary. If you came with us to battle, it would be a laugh--"

"Hey! Don't ignore me like that!"

Sniggering could be heard outside, "It's one-all for the team of wall runners! What will the outcome be when Mr. Gravity Man gets him again?"

"Shut up, Shiro!"

There was a moment of constant yelling and then another voice. "What is all of this commotion about?! Will someone please explain it before I tell one of the respected few?"

Silence. Then, there was the distinctive whining of Clef's voice. "They were being mean again… AND Farea made me run into a wall! Look!"

"Wow, what a clear print…"

"Undine! You're supposed to be on my side!"

"I was? Oh, I was just looking for Shiro, that's all. But really, keep quiet when you're playing your games."

"We weren't--"

"Bye! Don't kill yourselves before the day's over!"

"Wait—argh, dammit."

"So, Clef, want to run into another wall now?"

"No I don't!"

"Well, I don't care what you say, let's just see if we can find you another wall--"

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO CLEF?!"

"Eep! Z-Zeike!"

"WELL?!"

"Brother, keep your voice down, please… Oh, Clef, are you okay?"

"Um… half-smashed skull, I'm assuming. Do I look okay?"

"Kinda… you look like you're delusional or something. Come on, we have to get you fixed up now."

"'Kay…"

"ANSWER MY QUESTION ALREADY!"

"Come on, Zeike. It was just a joke…" there was a half-attempt of laughter, then more bellowing.

"ARE YOU AN IDIOT?!"

Daisuke sighed. All the peace disturbed in one incident that then became a chain event. Rubbing his eyes and hoping that his hair wasn't in that bad a condition, he stumbled out of bed. He was used to the surroundings and all and at least there was life this time, rather than eerie, stuffy silence. The only thing he was really looking forward to was visiting Dark. Even after their talk, Dark seemed rather disturbed by it all, and it would be a lot nicer if someone would actually explain something to the baffled redhead.

Everyone held a piece to the puzzle, and many were unwilling to hand it over and that was the problem to it all: if they couldn't work together properly, then there was no way that they could defeat this terror that threatened to consume them all.

Although yesterday had been an incredibly long night, Daisuke had managed to stumble upon what looked like an old library, full of books that mentioned past wars concerning magic, spells, and scriptures to the past horrors that scared them all. He had read a few to get the gist, but couldn't get all the answers in that one night. So he planned to check it later when he knew he wouldn't be disturbed. By now, people were allowing him to go his own way, rather than stalking him.

Leaving his room tidily arranged, he noticed that large imprint that Clef had managed to create after Farea did… whatever he did, and sweat dropped at how clear it really was. Whatever had happened, it really seemed to be painful. The cost was clear now, though, and he sighed in relief, not wanting to be forced into an argument that didn't mention him in the first place.

The trip to Dark's room wasn't that long, really, now that Daisuke had managed to find a shortcut, and it wasn't too long before he was sitting next to his cousin, who was – at the moment – snoring loudly.

"Zzz… not now… zzt… later maybe… zzy… goddammit, just leave me alone!" With that, Dark jerked awake and blinked at Daisuke, who was currently staring at him with an odd expression. "Hm? Something the matter Daisuke?"

"No, not really…" (besides talking in your sleep…) The redhead turned away to hide his smile. When Dark talked in his sleep, it was always incredibly entertaining – even it was a bit mean of him to think that. Not that it really matter, since Dark was now looking around for something before pulling it out from under his pillow.

"WITH, what are you--" spluttered the teen. Said bunny-thing replied with an indignant 'kyu' and then hopped onto Daisuke's head for protection. Of course, since Dark was merely wondering how his pet had survived under there and all, gave up seeing as With was still alive, and that was all that really mattered at the moment. Lying back, he glanced up at the redhead. "So, what made you come here this early during the day?"

"How do you know it's day?" he blinked, "Once you stay here too long, it really doesn't matter whether it's day or night."

"Internal clock, and external clock," Dark replied, showing his wristwatch, which was still functioning perfectly. "Anyway, what you wanna talk about?"

"About the stuff Krad-san said, really, and how you know him," Daisuke stated simply, "You seemed really out of it when I left you last night… or whenever it was."

"Aah yes," he nodded, looking at the ceiling, "About the stuff he said, well… I can't really recall everything, but I'm pretty sure that something between the lines are supposed to mean something, but I've been drawing a blank since. I'm going over it, but that's about it. And with me knowing Krad… well, we've met a few times before all this, so… yeah."

"And what did he mean by incident?"

"Oh. Gang fight, I think. One against a couple of tens as such. Who wouldn't have thought that?"

Daisuke frowned. The first two answers had been sincere and incredibly Dark-like, but the last one had taken a strange unwanted tour to someplace that the redhead couldn't exactly place. It wasn't like he was a telepath or anything, but he knew Dark just a bit too well, and the waves that the teen was emitting… why wasn't anyone giving straight answers?

It was just getting really annoying…

The silence that had followed after the answer was rudely interrupted as someone Daisuke couldn't identify burst in. She had long light blue hair – only a shade darker than Satoshi's – and was looking rather frustrated at the moment. When she noticed that she was in the wrong room, she bowed apologetically. "Sorry!"

She rushed out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her, and the two boys exchanged quizzical looks.

"Know her?"

"No."

"That was… weird."

"Definitely."

---

"This is Milea online. May I hold a message?"

"Yes. I need a connection to Takada-san or Hiwatari-san. Is there a possibility of that happening soon?"

"Let me see…" there was the sound of a notebook flipping open. "I'm sorry to say that Takada-san will be unable to talk until… well, it doesn't say, but I can connect you to Hiwatari-kun in about… three hours, if you're willing to wait."

"Of course."

"Who am I speaking to, anyway?"

"Oh, just an old friend of their relatives. Just an old friend… and they may need the help, after all…"

"…"

"Thank you for being so polite. I don't get that often. Au revoir!" The connection broke off and Milea blinked and stared at the screen.

"Weirdo. What was that all about?" She sighed as she shuffled her papers while reading her notebook. What had happened to Akane? She had disappeared early morning – something about errors and having an errand to run – and had assured them that she would be back by the end of the day. It was customary to write in the notebook in case of messages the next time they could talk appointed times, but the girl had left it blank.

Milea shook her head. Very strange indeed. Not to mention she had lost her way again… now she felt like a complete idiot.

The door opened and Elena entered, looking around. "Oh, are you the only one here then?"

"Yeah. Were you trying to find someone else?"

"I was wondering where Shia-san had gone. I haven't seen her since… last night. And we have an important mission to work on before the next attack."

"Ah… Shia-chan? She's gone as well?"

"Yes."

Milea frowned. "Hm…"

----

Yes, an update. I'm so happy. Okay, I'll keep quiet now.

--_Reviewer Replies:_

-Staryday: Yeah, the internet can be so cruel at times... Now, let me see... yes, Dark is still very much awake, but neither of the two are speaking about the past. Not that they've had a moment alone to yell at each other, anyway. I think I'll stick that in the next chapter. More new characters and strange humor from me, but I'm happy. Hope you are as well.

-marthawolfer: Glad you liked it! I don't think I've lost my inspiration completely... but it really does take time, doesn't it? Hope you liked the update.


	8. Eight

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterisations, one too many new characters to contend with.

000 Darkened Heart 000

000 8 000

Akane looked up at the sky, pushing her hair back as she did so. It had been a really long time since she had decided to go outside, but then again, when was the last time she wanted out just for some thinking time?

There had never been a time like that. Since the fall of the light and darkness together, the world had fallen into complete chaos and now people had to fear for their lives. Even the ones who lived normal, day-to-day lives seemed to be feeling the aftereffects and the battles that the condemned ones fought to protect the land.

She wondered if there really was an end to it.

Maybe, maybe not. It was chance that couldn't be taken because it was very life-threatening and dangerous.

"Hm… it really is a nice day…" she murmured to herself, making her way around as she did so. If anything did happen, she was pretty sure they would be able to handle it. It was in the blood, after all.

"So, tell me, HOW long am I supposed to stay in bed?" demanded Dark, "It's so boring here! I need out now!" He was acting like a little kid as well, Daisuke had decided, sitting next to his cousin as Elena firmly shook her head at him.

"You know you haven't fully recovered," she stated simply, "And until you get the clear, you shouldn't leave your bed. That's what Celes-san said."

"I want to speak to her! I can't believe you expect me to lie here all day?"

(Only because you're always so full of energy,) thought Daisuke.

_(So true.)_

(So you're still here?)

_(Where else would I be? Besides the fact that I am you, you can't do anything about it.)_

(So now I'm having conversations with myself…)

_(Yeah.)_

(Does that make me officially insane then?)

_(I don't think so. If anything, I am just a part of your spell.)_

(Spell?)

No answer was given this time and the redhead sighed. Then he noticed that a hand was waving in front of him and he turned his head slightly with a raised eyebrow. "What is it, Dark?" he asked, only to get bowled over when his cousin jumped on him for no reason at all. With a yelp he fell to the floor and winced at the numbing pain.

"Dark… get off."

"Hey, it's not my fault that I couldn't get your attention." The violet-haired boy replied lightly, getting off, "It was either that or pain."

"Actually, you ended up doing both," Daisuke tried to scowl, but Dark only smirked and petted him on the head. "You'll kill me in the end if you're not careful."

"Hey, I'm not that careless, you know!"

"Yes you are! Remember that time when you pushed me down those stairs! Everyone nearly had a heart attack with that!"

"I was just joking around and trying to see if you were actually learning what I was trying to teach you," Dark crossed his arms and sat back, sizing Daisuke up, "Anyway, you were zoning out so I was wondering what was going on."

"Hn, must be me getting really, really bored," the redhead joked lightly, "And what would you have done if I'd died?" he imitated Dark's voice, "'It wasn't my fault! He TOLD me to push him down the stairs and kill him! Right Daisuke? Right?'"

"Hey!"

Daisuke smiled at this, noting that whenever that Dark was indignant, he looked utterly hilarious, being the more carefree sort of guy, as well as a pervert and a weird guy in so many ways…

He shook his head at that and noticed that his cousin was looking at him strangely again. It was rather unsettling. "What?"

"You know, you've been really out of it _lately_," commented the violet-haired boy, stressing on the word 'lately'. "Are you sure that you're alright? If anything, you're going to explode if you don't tell people what you think."

The redhead seemed confused by this, "Are you saying that I think that something's wrong now? Why would anything be wrong?"

"Well, let's see," Dark began to count off what he was thinking that Daisuke was thinking with his hands, "You might be sick, you might be worried as to what's gonna happen, you don't want anyone else to be hurt, you're wondering what they hell is inside you, you want out of here, and you're zoning out expeditions may just be you becoming a zombie."

"… Huh?"

"Whatever, you get the picture," heaving himself out of bed and hitting With lightly – who was getting beyond restless – he stood up. "Screw staying in bed. I want to see what this place has to offer." He stumbled slightly while he tried to get his legs back to working order and Daisuke trailed behind him, looking worried.

"Are you really sure you want to go out in this condition?" he asked.

"Out of this room. Pft," Dark snorted, "If anything, I want to blow this joint out altogether. I mean, you don't want to live the rest of your life like this, right?"

The redhead didn't choose to answer it, because the answer was obvious: of course he wanted to get out, but if he did… all that waited him was death and hatred. He didn't want to face that fate, but still…

"Hey," started his cousin, suddenly serious, "You know, your mother and father, well, everyone, they never wanted you to be sad or depressed. Even when they found out your… unique abilities, they kept on trying, hoping that you wouldn't have to face this. But don't worry, I'm gonna make sure you don't have to live life like this, 'kay?"

"Dark," Daisuke gave him a wane smile, "you're crazy." He definitely appreciated the thought, but he wasn't stupid. No one could change what was done, and that was that, they all had to get over it and continue their lives the best they could, really. He stopped going over such thoughts when he noticed that Dark was peering into one of the rooms. "Something the matter?"

"Sh. I think a meeting's going on at the moment," hissed the other boy, the door only opened a crack so that the voices within the room would reach them. Crouching, he waved the redhead to join him, who hesitated, then complied.

"I was never told there was another meeting…" he began, but Dark indicated silence again as the talking began again.

"I'm telling you, this is beyond our power now, and Akane refuses to accept this as it is. I know that her intentions, as well as the others are right, but they could kill us all."

"Are you swearing mutiny against them now!"

"No. I'm trying to make it clear so that we can tell both herself and Satoshi that this is ridiculous. We can't risk anymore deaths. I mean, just a few months back we lost"

"We're not saying that what you're wrong, but if we don't even try to fight back, everyone, and I mean EVERYONE will die. Not just a couple of people during failed missions. Besides, that was ten months back, you can't put that against them."

"But they don't even seem to care that these people are dying!"

"Enough," another voice cut in before bickering started. "But the fact remains that this is indeed a grave situation. But what are we to do about it?"

(Celes-san…?) Daisuke wondered, (Why is she…)

"We have to stop this charade!" yelled an unidentifiable voice. Then there was the distinctive sound of someone slamming their fist against something solid, "This battle is getting us nowhere and all we're all suffering!"

"And there'll be more suffering if we don't fight back!" barked another voice.

"Please, let us be more calm about this."

"No way! If we keep on doing this, I'm going to leave this hell hole!"

"And what? Go out and get caught and die? You wish."

"Do you want a piece of me!"

"I'd like to see you try it!"

As the argument invariably moved off into a brawl of sorts, Dark turned to the shocked redhead and raised a confused brow. "Are meetings always like this?"

"I don't know…" In reality, this was the first meeting that Daisuke actually had a chance to listen into, and he wasn't getting much out of it. "Maybe if we wait for them to calm down, we'll get something more interesting."

Dark sat down properly, with Daisuke following suit. "I'm with you."

"This is the last time I'm going to give you a chance to live!"

"Bring it on!"

000

Krad watched as the clouds moved slightly under the usual daytime ritual. Not that it was morning anymore – being midday – but he wasn't in the mood to actually do much and the job he would have to do was no walk in the park. So it was best to keep relaxed and extremely detached until the set time when he would have to return to the incredibly dreary and dank place. It was obvious that someone had tried to make it more homely, but in reality it was just another prison; no one was allowed out and death was the only thing waiting for them in the outside world. He hated the ignorance of the human race and their love for bloodshed, it was both insane and pointless, and they still did it. What were they to gain from it? What was it that they wanted to gain?

In the end there was nothing. That was the prize they would receive.

The blonde knew this, and he hated seeing almost everyone following the same little trail that would lead to their downfall. It was ridiculous and pathetic, and he hated the fact that he was even associated with them.

He was positive the last battle had finished it off.

But maybe he was wrong. Maybe there was someone else behind it that was pulling the strings.

He frowned, it really was annoying to think in such a way, but if it was starting again…

"Krad, what are you doing up there?" called someone from the floor below his room. "Homework?"

"Yes," he replied without too much thought. Not like someone would ask him if he was planning to kill someone, or do something supernatural; it wasn't their way. But then again, they were one of those people that were with the people who wanted to kill them.

"Krad?" Satoshi's voice echoed through his door, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Not really, he was thinking, and it wasn't that enjoyable kind of thinking either. It was horrid, and he had promised never to come face to face with Dark Mousy again, not after all that had happened. And who was that other person… Dark's sister. She'd disappeared during the confusion and was never spoken of again.

"I need to talk to you."

"Sure." What was there to talk about? He hated his life and the way the world ran at the moment, but nothing was going to change it. He'd been so sure that it was over, but he was so wrong. Not to mention seeing Dark wasn't too good on his nerves either. That violet haired jerk had always gotten on his nerves…

Satoshi entered the room, looking apprehensive, if it was possible when someone always had a blank look on their face. Maybe it was in the eyes.

"What are you thinking, Krad?"

"Besides the fact that life sucks?"

000

The streets were busy, as usual, and Akane frowned, trying to remember the way to wherever she was going to. But seeing as it had been a long time she'd been out – what was it? Six months? That was not including the times when they were fighting either… - and it was all too confusing. But she knew she blended in perfectly, but was wondering if help would really come in the way she wanted it to.

There was no assurance that it was going to work, but it wasn't like they much of a choice left. The reality of life really was a bit too cruel for it's own good. But what were they to do?

The redhead stopped when she noticed that there was someone right behind her. Stopping in front of one of the more gothic-like shops, she turned slowly to face whoever it was. Short black hair pulled back into a low ponytail, loose fitting shirt decorated with silver and a knee-length skirt was all that was needed, along with the light brown eyes and Akane smiled slightly.

"Shia."

"Akane," the woman bowed. She was only about her mid-twenties and she opened the shop door slightly, listening to the tinkle of the classic bell-upon-entering. She then turned to face the younger girl. "May I speak to you for a moment. It has been a while since you stepped into my shop. Come on, nothing to be afraid of," despite her serious tone of voice and facial structure, and the fact that she seemed to stand straight all the time, she really seemed to emit a kind and caring aura. Akane stepped into the shop and was instantly bathed in purple light. The shop seemed to be full of the colour and the only time when there was a different colour, was when there were certain selling items. Otherwise, the whole building was overwhelmed in the lush violet.

"I need to find connections that won't betray us this time," began the redhead, not bothering to waste any time as the older woman moved around making tea (or something), "It was so close the last time, and I think our time is slipping away. We can't wait any longer."

Shia was silent, as if thinking deeply, before she replied, "We are in dark times, Akane, and we have to trust nobody. There is little more I can say about it. And how is Celes?"

"She won't talk."

"I see," pouring some tea in light amethyst teacups, she pushed one over to Akane, "Well, you must know that you are gifted and in danger, like only a few others. I have been with you since your youngest ages, and I intend to help you as much as I can. And what do you know about this Niwa Daisuke?"

"He was what we expected," she replied softly, "But he doesn't know how much danger he's in. Death is obvious, but there is so much more, so much he's been sheltered from. We kept it quiet, knowing that it would be too much after the death of his family, but we can't hold it much longer without risking dangers. More than we want."

"I know," agreed Shia, "And it is that that will lead to our downfall. No, the downfall of every living thing here. The evil that has plagued the land is really getting stronger."

"But we're still not strong enough."

"Akane, Akane," reaching over the violet covered table, she petted the younger girl's hand, "Remember that there is more than one future for all of us. As the child who possesses Time, do I really have to tell you that?"

"I don't like to think about what I have. It's… it's like a curse. Knowing and not knowing, seeing and being unable to tell. It hurts."

"It does, I know it does. But you have to face it eventually. Does this mean you haven't told them yet?"

"…" Akane turned away.

"Akane, you must tell them. Only then will black and white be clear. If you keep running away from your past, then you won't be able to continue forward."

"And I promised to never face them again…"

"Oh…" Shia sighed and then stood up. Akane followed her gaze and the older woman smirked. "Well, I can't change your mind, so how about a practice bout?

"Let's see if you've gotten any better the last time we had one-on-one combat."

000

_It was a promise they had made, when the evil was completely destroyed. They made it clear that seeing the other was only necessary if danger would befall the land. They separated and never faced each other._

_The pain they felt after the loss of one was enough for them to leave each other, and to try and put them out of their minds. They didn't want to, but it was the only way. It was the one thing they were asked by one, since he was the one who suffered the most in the end._

_He lost his family, he lost his home, he lost the last link to his life. He had no reason to know them, and that was what convinced him to leave in the first place. The other three were hurt, but they couldn't change it. So they made a promise and that was that. It could have never worked out anyway, they were being searched._

_But what if the evil was to return? Would they meet up again, or not?_

_The blonde wished it wasn't so, the violet just couldn't think straight. _

_The last two… were never found. Their existence gone from sight._

_Were they still alive? Did they still live? No one knew._

_But the time is now._

000

By the time the bickering and overly-enhanced battling had fizzled down to mutinous muttering and the actual subject to discussion, Dark was nearly asleep and Daisuke really wanted to join him and doze off as well. But since they were back on the topic, he gently shook his cousin awake and they listened in yet again.

"Now that you two have calmed down, may we begin?"

"But Akane isn't here…"

"This is a special meeting. We need to discuss what this 'evil' actually is."

"I'd say it was just something that will destroy the land in the very end."

"No, I don't think so. It has to be worse. Violation, perhaps?"

"Either way, we'll have to face it one day. I'd rather not think about it."

"But if we defeat it, we may be able to live normal lives again!"

"At risk of death!"

"Please, we must think this over carefully."

Silence.

"How much do we know of the elemental balance at the moment? Is there a conclusion to the power in them?"

"Still none. Those who do possess it are still undecided."

"Akane trusts us! If everyone knew, it could mean chaos!"

"But the power is dangerous if not noticed and taken care of."

"We trust her and she trusts us!"

"This is evil is too strong! We shouldn't be doing this!"

"What is this evil, Celes?"

"It is an evil… an evil that should have been sealed away long ago…"

Daisuke craned his head, heart beating faster than usual as he tried to regulate his breathing. Why was he so worried? Was there some sort of connection to all of this?

Dark was grim faced.

000

By the time Krad and Satoshi arrived to base, Milea; who was muttering under her breath in the process, greeted them. Catching sight of them, she began to talk without pausing for breath. The blue-haired boy raised an eyebrow before commanding her to slow down.

"Well," she began, "Akane-san's nowhere to be found, and you got a call from some weirdo who keeps talking about how you know each other."

Satoshi raised an eyebrow, "Well, if that's the case…"

"…" Krad remained silent as they made their way to the control room and Milea hit a few buttons as Satoshi put on some earphones connected to a small microphone. He indicated for the blonde to follow his example and there was a sound of electricity crackling and then finally someone spoke up.

"Hello? Anyone there?"

"Hiwatari Satoshi speaking. Who is this?" the blue-haired boy was not one to be overly polite with strangers calling for him, but he held enough courtesy to not start screaming at people. There was silence for a moment and then a reply.

"Hiwatari-san, bonjour!"

"… Oh god no…"

Krad looked confused, "It's…"

"Don't you remember me guys?"

"You know, I'd rather not remember," muttered Satoshi.

"You were an annoyance beyond the normal standards of chaos," added Krad.

"Hey, that's mean."

"No it isn't."

Milea blinked. "Huh?"

"So, spit out what you want to talk about."

"Oh right. Well, it's about the monster attacks we're currently receiving… do you know anything about it?"

Both boys exchanged glances. So that was it.

000

Look, I did end up updating in the end! Okay, I've been doing random stuff at the moment, but it's a job I'm willing to take, so here I am. Just two more chapters and I reach number ten! I don't know why I'm so excited, but I am. Hope this chapter wasn't too boring for you.

_Reviewer Replies:_

Lord Scribbles: Whoa! Review overload! (gets swirly eyes from trying to make sense of what just happened) Sorry about that, but it really was surprising when you reviewed all the chapters. o.O Thank you so much! I'm doing my best, but this is definitely a more relaxed sort of chapter, if you get my drift. All Dark and Daisuke are doing is eavedropping and most people are doing their own thing now. Whoo-hoo! Dark has a sister! Who is she? What's her reason of existing? Well, you'll just have to read on and see! Thanks a lot!

marthawolfer: It's like an underground world, now that I think about it. I mean, I don't even know how many people actually live here. Guess I have to work on that, don't I? But it's like really dim and rocky, it's little wonder to Dark wanting to get out now… thanks for the review!

Mystical Tennyo: Hiya to you to. I'm obsessed with making lots of characters, although I tend to make more girls than guys, now that I think about it. It does get confusing though, I have to admit.

Staryday: Really? Was it that good? I didn't really think so, but I enjoyed it the most. Strange how this story began because I was in an angst overdrive… so very weird. (shakes head) Well, I guess I didn't want Krad's character to be… I dunno, so sadistic or something? I mean, I think he still is a bit but not as much. Or something. How confusing. o.O They were going to yell at each other? Did I actually imply that? Well, that's a really good idea though, I just have to use it! Probably in the next chapter though, since they're all busy one way or another. Thanks for the review, I'm doing my best!

Shadow Guardian of the Gate: Are you serious? You actually like this story? o.O Who would have thought. Sorry for the slow update, but I hope you like this chapter! I'll try and get another one up soon, okay?

Anyway, I love all of you who review, or at least try to read all the stuff I write! It encourages me to try harder! Harder, I say! Anyway, thanks again and cupcakes for everyone! (Yeah, I'm a bit hyper this morning…) Oh, and now I have to use 0 for the page breaks. What is with the editing thing these days? When I get to chapter ten, it's going to get very confusing...


	9. Nine

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterisations, one too many new characters to contend with.

There is a little bit of French in the beginning, and the translated text is in brackets and in italics. Just so you know beforehand. Let's continue this story…

000 Darkened Heart 000

000 9 000

Satoshi was getting annoyed as he tried to get the conversation back on whatever topic they had been talking about in the first place. He could always disconnect the line and then that was it, but this particular person wasn't one to give in so easily. He would just call again, and then again, and then again… someone really needed to fix this guy's brain, he told himself thickly while Krad found a texta, a stack of blank re-usable paper and was now drawing something. The blue-haired boy looked over the blonde's shoulder, curious as to what he could be doing.

… Okay.

He hated to admit it and all, but Krad was really good at drawing. Even is the scene involved him killing Dark for some reason. Honestly, if he'd only had a red texta… the effect was sickening with green blood and he was already feeling slightly nauseous.

"How do you know Dark anyway?" he muttered away from the microphone so that the rambling person couldn't actually hear him. The blonde glanced up in his direction before returning to his… artwork. Maybe he was wondering if the school would like it as a donation for their personal art gallery? There wasn't anything in there anyway… and maybe people would enjoy looking at the Phantom Thief dead, or something.

Krad mentally hit himself: he wasn't supposed to be thinking that way, but the stupid person STILL talking always made him show the worst of himself at the worst possible time. Recovering and blocking out the annoying rambling in the background, he turned back to the other boy and smirked evilly. "Do you REALLY want to know?"

Satoshi rolled his eyes at this. It always started out this way. "YES."

The smirk was wider now, "Maybe some other time."

"You know that this is one of the few times when we can talk without any sort of disturbances," the blue-haired boy bristled in annoyance. Really, Krad annoyed him too much sometimes that it wasn't very funny. It was as funny as knowing that everyone was going to die because of something they couldn't control. Yes, very fun.

"Bonjour ? Êtes-vous distillateur là ?" _(Hello? Are you still there?)_

"I really think I need to tell him to stop speaking in French," muttered Krad in annoyance, "Due to the fact that neither one of us can understand a thing he says." He crackled his knuckles as Satoshi fiddled with the dials on the main board before them.

"What do you want to talk about?" Satoshi half-snapped, wanting to go home already, "We have lives to live through, you know."

"Oh, really?" he seemed really surprised with this revelation, "Désolé." _(Sorry)_

"Fine, whatever," he replied sharply, seeing that Krad wasn't going to say anything to help, "Just… stop speaking in French already…"

"Uh, that's where I am, so it's natural," the boy on the other end pointed out simply. Because of the transition, they couldn't see his face anyway, but the voice was still annoyingly clear, "By the way, where's Takada-san?"

"Out."

"Oh. Pity."

"In the end it doesn't matter either way," Satoshi sighed, "Now can we get back to the main topic of you calling? Pierre."

"They should have called him chaos sur des jambes _(chaos on legs)_." Krad commented.

Satoshi glared at him, "I thought you didn't know any French."

"I don't. I just ripped it off an online translation."

"…"

Pierre – at least the fuzzy screen, anyway – shook his head before speaking again, this time seemingly more serious than the last few times. "We have been getting an annoying amount of attacks that are beginning to get out of hand, you see. So, want to play a game of cards somehow?"

Getting tired with the conversation, Satoshi hit 'disconnect' and sat back, rubbing his temples in pain. So these things could get to him. Krad tucked his picture away – which actually did have him stabbing Dark with a number of sharp objects – and looked over to his half-brother. "Are you going to be okay now? You haven't eaten anything all day as well…"

"I don't need to eat."

The blonde scoffed at this but didn't bother to press the matter for the time being because Milea was hovering around in the background, confused by what had just happened. Not that he could blame her for it, seeing that… well, they had just gotten into a _sort_ of argument with some guy that they wanted to keep away from.

That was the main reason that they usually kept to themselves.

Satoshi turned to the girl, who inclined her head in acknowledgment. "Where's Takada?"

"Oh? She's… out, I guess," Milea scratched the back of her head, obviously confused with the matter, "She didn't write anything when she was going to come back, so I have no idea and no one has seen her since… well, a while now. Also, Elena-san can't find Shia-chan. And she was supposed to be here by now…"

"…" Krad leaned over to speak to the boy next to him. "Did you just get any of that?"

"No, but I can work it out," Satoshi frowned as he tried to work it out, "Takada is out and no one has seen her, Shia hasn't come for the meeting, and… we're late for the meeting."

Grabbing the blonde by the wrist, the blue-haired boy bolted out of the room without another word. It was a bit strange, seeing that his voice and face didn't change a bit at the mention of being late for something important and Milea giggled, taking a seat. She'd been here since the age of ten and had many friends, but it didn't mean she was used to the place, and she hated being cooped up in there all the time. She was kind of hoping that Shia would be here soon so that they could go for a walk in the day, for once. But it was just a wish, and it wasn't going to happen, so the eighteen year old flipped open a notebook, pulled on a headset, and went straight back to work.

000

"An evil that was sealed many years ago is back…" whispered a hushed voice, silence filling the room in droves, "It is now that we must face our greatest fears… but in face of death, are we willing to sacrifice it? Or shall we destroy the source? It is all a matter of question."

(What are they talking about?)

_(Evil power?)_ perked the other voice in his head.

(Confusing, huh?)

_(Yep.)_

There was more arguing and they were about to talk more about this 'evil power', only that they were distracted when a certain pair of people ended up running into them.

000

There was a sudden surge of power behind her and Akane flipped back, using her staff as a centerfold to get out of the way, sticking it in the ground and using that as an improvised lever. The place where she'd been standing by blew up spectacularly and she pulled her staff out of the ground, which was about as tall as her. She counted a sharp blow meant for her side and countered, using a mix of stabbing and slashing at the vulnerable parts of the body. Each blow was countered blocked and that was how evenly the two were matched.

"Very good, Akane," Shia panted out, as they fell into a stand-still position where their weapons were locked together. "You seem to be learning well. But how much more can you take?"

"Eh…" she frowned, not understanding what the older woman was going on about.

Smirking, Shia flicked back her hair in a professional manner with her free hand before holding it up and beginning to chant softly. Instantly the other pulled back and noticed that a complete barrier caged her in and that the small pieces of paper were Shia's source of the barrier. Akane crossed her arms and inclined her head, trying to get her breathing regulated again.

"So… you think that's going to work on me?" she asked coolly. "Sensei."

As the spell took place, Akane muttered something under her breath and dropped her weapon. Shia seemed to take this as a sign and – forgetting the spell – ran up to the other girl, catching her by surprise, or so it seemed.

Catching the punch and stopping it short, the two stopped when they felt a sudden discharge of magic that wasn't their own. "That just was…" she frowned.

The woman sighed and removed the barrier, pulling out a sword that sat by the wall of the room they had been sparring in. "So there is another? Why must it always be here…"

"Because you're the Guardian," Akane pointed out.

"Yes. And you must go and help me fight as well."

"I know."

"Go ahead. I will be there."

Shia turned away for a minute, working out who she would call and what else she had to deal with, setting up the barrier as such, and when she turned back to where her one-time student had been, she smiled at the empty space before her.

That, and a single feather.

000

Daisuke squeaked in discomfort as he felt someone fall on top of him and he vaguely recalled his cousin swearing slightly, only to be cut off by someone telling him to shut up. Struggling to breathe for a moment, he caught sight of someone with blue hair. Well, then again, as far as he knew, there was only one person in this whole place who had blue hair. Actually, there was that girl, but she had long hair and all that and…

"Need… air…" gasped the redhead, just as he noticed how much danger he was really in. Who would have thought that air would become such an important part of life?

"Wait, you're not dead are you!" there was the feeling of people getting off him and then someone grabbed him by the collar and began to hake him like a rag doll, "Daisuke! You can't die out on me now!"

This irritated Daisuke a bit, seeing that he'd been through worse. And the shaking wasn't helping too much either, "If you don't mind, I need to breathe." He managed to say, only to have Dark drop him and he yelped as his tailbone hit the stone floor. "DARK!"

His cousin snickered, only to notice something and he stopped. The redhead was rubbing himself, which was stinging badly, or was it throbbing, and then looked up to see why he had fallen silent. He felt his cheeks go red in embarrassment when he finally worked out what had just happened. And now the entire meeting was staring at them.

Most were people that he didn't even know, mostly in their early to mid twenties and over half of them were laughing under their breaths, or coughing behind their hands, he reasoned. Celes, who was at the very front, looked genuinely shocked at the interruption.

"Ah… Hiwatari-san, I was beginning to wonder as to what had happened to you," she said courteously, bowing slightly. The others bowed and muttered offbeat welcomes, not looking too happy with the interruption and all. Daisuke was disappointed, seeing that they had come close to learning something important. He was so sure of it! "And… Hikari-san? Pleased to meet you, I'm sure."

Krad was scowling, but maybe it was because of the running and then the tripping; right into a door that burst open upon contact as well. Satoshi didn't look annoyed or irritated, merely bored, as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose again.

"Sorry for the delay. There were some matters I had to clean up," he intoned neutrally, giving Daisuke and Dark a glance, indicating that they keep quiet. "And I think we began to allow Niwa-kun and his cousin into the meetings." He held up a hand to keep the disgruntled murmuring under control, "I am sure you are aware of the situation, so we need all the help we can get." He received more murmuring from this.

Kain sat up straight, "I agree with him. If it had been the time of Peace, then I would be going against him--"

"Like you usually do," muttered someone in the background.

"—but this is a very serious situation."

"Can they ever help us in any way?" demanded a nasal voice. "Can they fight or do what we sorely need done? What is it that will make them useful?"

Dark bristled at this, "Hey, look you…"

He was then distracted as With popped out of nowhere, as per usual, "Kyu!"

"With! What was that for!"

"Kyu?"

There was a shriek, "The Demon from Hell!"

"Uh… what?" Dark crossed his arms and looked confused as chaos began to spread around the meeting room, people panicking and yelling alike. Krad stepped up next to him, but didn't even give him a glance as they conversed.

"They seem surprised."

"We're talking about With here. How could they scream about a bunny?"

"We all know what it really is, Dark."

"And he hasn't killed anyone yet either."

"You really taught him well, didn't you?"

"That's just my job."

Daisuke blinked as the scene unfolded before him and was slightly apprehensive, if not entertained. After being told not to get into the middle of the mess, he watched as both Kain and Satoshi tried their best to get everyone back into control. Out of everyone there, Celes seemed to be the only one composed, yet she didn't try to bring back order.

He found this very confusing.

(I wonder why…)

000

"Connection. Seeking permission in line 06," murmured a voice in the headpiece and Milea looked up, hitting a button and reply. "Password already entered and no errors at the moment." Nodding at the result, she hit another button and spoke.

"Connection granted. Please allow line 06 to filter through," she muttered, eyes focused on the data that stretched out before her. There was a soft beeping noise. "Report any errors found."

"No errors. Filtering through," the voice intoned back after a split second of silence.

"Okay then," closing her eyes and sighing, the girl waited for a moment before speaking into her microphone, "This is Milea. Whom am I speaking to?"

"Milea-chan, so it's you on duty," a voice picked up. The picture came into clear view and Shia smiled warmly at the teen, who smiled back brightly, "Well, I'm glad that I managed to reach you already. I hate the whole sit and wait deal."

"Shia-chan, it's been so long since your last visit!" she exclaimed, "Why aren't you here yet? What's going on?"

The older woman held up a hand to silence the other, "We don't have time to catch up. The area is currently being held and blocked off because of a magical discharge. Akane has gone ahead of me, but I'll need the Hit Squad and anyone else at hand. This is going to be a big one this time."

Milea swallowed, jotting down the information unconsciously, "Another one? How can you be so sure that no one else is going to get involved? I mean, it's day out there, right?"

"I'm a Guardian, Milea, don't forget that," Shia cut in firmly, "Now just pass the message on. We don't have much time left, you know."

"Okay. I've got it." She then pouted slightly. "But you know that I have no sense of direction at all."

"Well, this will teach you."

"What? I've had eight years to learn!"

Shia could only shake her head and the connection broke off. Wishing that there was someone else around, Milea got up and proceeded to the door, wishing that there was a map – or directly, to say the least - so that she could find the others soon.

With a sigh, she took off.

000

On top of a tall building, Akane stood there, unseen by the world below. How she got up there and how she managed to maintain her balance, no one knew but it wasn't the time to think about such unnecessary thoughts.

Both hands crossed over so that the palms hovered over her shoulders, the redhead closed her eyes and began to concentrate on the small power that was always locked up inside of her. There was a reason for everything, and if Elena and the Barrier Squad weren't present, desperate measures had to be used. Especially when it was the middle of the day.

She shook her head; why were they here? What had happened this time? It made no sense at all.

"Power locked away…"

The power in her was overwhelming, and that was why she was in hiding. It was something that should have never been in existence, but it was, and there was no way around it.

Akane shrugged: she'd lived with it before, she would just keep living with it.

"Sands of Time that are locked away… threads of fate untouched by the hand of man… the corresponding light and darkness that ease the pain…"

Would it work? No one knew. It was a first for her as well.

Thin strings of transparent energy began to appear around her fingers and they stretched out to the unknown. So that was how it was.

000

"Hiwatari-kun! We have an urgent situation!" Milea called as she finally found the meeting room. She froze when she noticed the complete chaos being emitted from all the people present and shrugged, finding it as part of a normal day's work. Catching sight of Kain right in front of her, she managed to grab his collar and pull him away from the crowd. "Hey, we have a problem."

"Oh really?" Kain perked up, seeing that he was usually the last person people turned to for some reason, "What's going on?"

After a brief explanation that only took half a minute, Kain had to plough himself through the crowd to find Satoshi. While this was happening, Milea turned to the redhead and the purple-haired guy: she remembered seeing them when she'd lost her way, but she knew nothing of them. Must be the newcomers then.

"Hello. I'm Milea. Nice to meet you."

"Hi. I'm Daisuke and he's Dark," the redhead smiled and bowed politely, although he seemed fairly worried: whether it was because of the chaos before him or the information he'd probably heard just then, she just didn't know. "Nice to meet you."

"So what's with the riot anyway?" she asked patiently, although she looked annoyed as Kain got caught up in a roadblock, it would seem. Tapping her foot impatiently, Daisuke could only really shrug vaguely as an answer and then pointed at With, who was sitting on Dark's head. Even the bunny looked confused with the results.

"They saw With and everyone began to panic for some reason."

"Oh?" Milea took a look at With and then frowned, crossing her arms, "And is that supposed to mean anything?"

"We… don't know."

"Uh-huh…"

Finally Satoshi managed to extract himself from the chaos and brushed himself off, Kain left far behind. Krad could only shake his head at him and then they all turned their attention back to Milea, who was now shifting on her feet.

"So what's happening?" It was also clear that Kain had not been able to get the message through, so she went back to explaining. Once she was done, though, Kain popped up and Satoshi issued some orders that would be passed on. Then he turned to the rest and told them to follow him and Milea was to… contact some other people, it would seem.

"What's going on?" asked Dark as they ran along the corridors; the odd person was forced to the side to avoid being knocked over. There was annoyed mutters all around, but nothing that made any sense, but the former Thief seemed to understand the situation more than Daisuke, who still looked puzzled over it all. Unless he was just holding another conversation with himself.

(Another attack?)

_(By the sounds of it.)_

(Wait… they can't be expecting me to do something…)

_(Who knows. Maybe.)_

(But… I've never fought in my whole life! I can't do it!)

_(Oh, maybe you'll surprise yourself.)_

(What?)

After receiving silence as a reply, Daisuke hopped around to catch up with the others, who were just a little more ahead of him. Satoshi was explaining the finer details to Dark, who was frowning and nodding and the redhead could only incline his head as his cousin turned to face him. "So?"

"I really can't see you doing anything too helpful, you know," came the first comment, and Daisuke pouted, "But apparently you need to be there for… experience."

"Eh?"

"Let's just say you're fighting."

"What! I can't fight!"

"Maybe you'll surprise everyone."

"Now that sounds stupid," Krad smirked at Dark, "Unless you count the time you decided to go sleepwalking and nearly ended up as monster food."

"Hey! That was not my fault!"

Satoshi rolled his eyes at this and the redhead was puzzled, as per usual: he seemed to be puzzled lately, so it wasn't surprising. "Has he told you anything about how he knows Krad? I can't get an answer out of him."

"Dark? No." Daisuke could only shrug lightly as they turned another corner at breakneck speed, "He seems to enjoy avoiding the issue though. Monsters?"

"I thought so too…" he finally came to a stop just as they were about to run into a steel door. It was like any other door, except with no knob or handle to open it. Rather, there was a small panel that sat next to it and the blue-haired boy walked over to it, tapped a few keys, and it slid open slowly.

"Entering in codes 043290 and 548678," a metallic voice intoned all around them, "Please state name, code, position of power and destination."

Satoshi rambled off an odd pair of numbers and words and then there was a small beep, "Permission granted. Hold out until sections 32 and 45 are clear… Clear. Please proceed to area 2. Thank you, have a nice day." It was a small room and on the other side another door slid open. Krad, Dark and Daisuke all looked confused with what was going on but followed the blue-haired boy anyway.

"If we're going to go fight, though," muttered Krad, catching up to the boy, "How do we plan to fight with no weapons?"

"Magic."

"Are you sure that's the best choice of action?"

He laughed, although it was completely toneless, "Don't worry. You're just keeping an eye on the dimensions. That's what you're here for. We'll be adequately prepared before we're out of this place."

"So you say."

"Yet I do," they reached the end and met up with Zeike and Leah, who were currently looking worried, or at least apprehensive. After a brief talk – word apparently got around fast in the base – and weapons were issued all around. It was more of a self-defense aspect then an attack one, so there wasn't any sort of risk of hurting oneself in the process.

There was a moment where yelling people passed down a corridor, but then Satoshi opened another door which led to the outside world.

Daisuke covered his eyes against the morning glare.

(Will I ever be able to live life normally again?)

_(Well, depends. If we can, we can. If we can't, we can't.)_

(Great answer.)

_(I do my best.)_

Krad stepped out and looked around for a moment and then pointed at a particular area that seemed to be wavering out of place. "There it is."

"As I thought," Satoshi sighed and closed the door behind him. There was a click of it locking and he tugged unconsciously at his sleeves. "It looks like there may be more then I thought."

"Any other plans then?"

"When we meet up with the Guardian and the rest of the Hit Squad you'll know. Let's go."

000

Shia tapped her foot impatiently, the katana sitting by the wall as she waited. There really wasn't much she could do at the moment, but waiting always got on her nerves, whether she showed it or not. With a slight sigh escaping her lips, she turned to where the chaos was.

Upon first glance, it wouldn't look like anything was out of the ordinary. But it was and even then humans would be unable to identify it. If anything, it would look like it was a heat wave with a vengeance; yet for those who were magic bound, or at least aware of the connection, they would be seeing thin strands of silver completely engulfing the sector in a dome format. It looked like the sort of string created by spiders of silk worms, but Shia was aware that if anything was to touch it or forcefully try to find its way out, it was repelled. She'd just seen that happen.

Monsters were already forming around the area, throwing themselves at the invisible barrier, only to be knocked back again, and then another time, and then another… it seemed that they were unaware of the simplicity of not running into it.

Of course the barrier had to have a source, but she wasn't too worried about what happened to them, seeing that the monster would never make it in time.

"Shia-san…"

At the sound of someone saying her name she turned and noticed Satoshi accompanied by three others. She inclined her head; "The Hit Squad is already in there if you were wondering."

The blue-haired boy nodded, "As long as they're on the scene. Was everyone cleared out beforehand?"

"Right before the appearances were actually made. We were hoping for better timing, but this barrier doesn't make them invisible. I got a page telling me that some people have already noticed and are panicking. We don't have much time."

"I see…" Satoshi then looked at the barrier, frowning, "This isn't the usual procedure; who's forming this… thing?"

Shia smiled grimly, "Akane."

000

There was a hefty bang and another monster was sent flying into a building close by. It growled and struggled to get up, only to be shot again. The attacker checked the number of bullets he had left before turning to the girl next to him. "I'm running low on ammo already. How are you faring, Chris?"

"Oh, I've had worse," growled the other, who was probably in her early twenties at most, "But they're rather persistent today. We don't usually use firearms on these, right?"

"Leave it to the children."

Zeike popped out of nowhere and frowned at the two, "Who's a child?"

"Eep! Don't do that!"

"We're just the attack force!"

The fifteen-year-old frowned at this again but left them to do their job. The Hit Squad was an actual full-force team for the current situation so to him it seemed a bit strange. He was used to working with a small group of selected people, but the rest were usually left to their own devices and sections. Why Shia had called for a full-frontal assault still confused him a bit, but who was he to complain?

"Have you found the source of the magic disturbance?" he asked Farea, who was looking at where the monsters were actually taking shape and scowling slightly for some reason. The other boy shrugged before giving his report.

"It's there but not there, I think. I'm not too sure. We have to actually get closer to get any sort of conclusion but it's too dangerous," he rambled off. "And what's with the barrier today? It looks… very different."

"I'll say," agreed Zeike, "Clef! Get over here!" The youngest member popped up next to them and inclined his head.

"Yeah?"

"You've got the equipment, right?"

"Yeah."

"Ah, there they are," he waved and dodged a flying monster that had just flown over their heads. Farea whipped out a machine gun and shot, only ever hitting the shapeless bulk and then put it down, "Must you do that now?"

"Hey, if I don't do it now, it's going to attack us again," he frowned and blew a stray hair out of the way, "I think we should just stick to magic. Oh, hi there."

Satoshi shook his head at them, "Have there been no drawn conclusions yet?"

Zeike shrugged at this, "Farea says that the source is there but not there, since we can't get any closer. That's why we've got all the equipment. That's what you wanted, right?"

He nodded, "Exactly."

Clef pulled a bag off his back and unzipped it, pulling out a various amount of headphones that were connected to mouthpieces, obviously used for long distanced communications. He gave them out to the other five and then to Farea and Zeike. Seeing Daisuke's bewildered state, he could only wave a hand to catch the boy's attention.

"You know you can't fight if you're in that sort of state," he watched as Shia struck out at a monster and sliced it in half, "Ouch. That's got to hurt."

"Uh… how do these work?" the redhead asked hesitantly.

"It's just magic-filtered. Don't worry about it."

"Uh-huh…" the boy watched as Daisuke's cousin laughed and slapped the headphones on, making the other boy yelp in surprise and began to berate him.

"I'll be leading the frontal assault," Zeike said under his breath to Shia, "Does that mean you'll be going solo again?"

"Always have, always will, my dear boy."

"Okay then," he turned to the others, "I'm assuming you'll be joining the assault?" Krad had walked off somewhere after talking to Satoshi for a moment and Dark had somehow found himself in possession with a machine gun that looked loaded. The blue-haired boy could only shrug at this.

"We're going solo as well," he finally admitted, "We'll be taking the sides in case any monsters try to get past the barrier and besides," he jerked his head at the other two, "it'll be good training for those two. They need it."

"Are you sure you can handle it with two inexperienced fighters?" Zeike looked slightly doubtful.

Satoshi smirked at this, "Who knows. They may surprise us all." He checked his headpiece before nodding and calling out some more orders before turning back to the leader of the Hit Squad, "If there are any problems, you'll get the message anyway. Let's go."

Once they were out of sight and Shia had hopped off somewhere else, he turned back to the fight at hand and could only sigh when he saw what had happened during his moment of distraction. Fuming, he almost decided that shooting them was a good idea.

"WHAT DO YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE DOING! BREAK IT UP ALREADY!"

Farea and Clef had been coming close to hurting one another and they were forced apart by the other boy. The purple-haired one muttered something in disappointment before shifting the weight of his machine gun onto his other shoulder. Clef rubbed his forehead where the barrel of the gun had pressed hard against and scowled.

"He started it," they said in unison, pointing at one another.

Zeike merely bristled. "I DON'T CARE ABOUT THAT!"

Chris rolled her eyes at her companion, "They never quit, do they?"

He could only grin as he blew another monster apart, "Like I said; they're just children."

000

"_Hey, can you hear me?"_

The small voice in Satoshi's ear was slightly distorted, but comprehendible, to say the least and he replied, "I can hear you. Have there been any errors during the connection break?"

"_None," _confirmed Milea on the other side, _"Elena and Kain are on the other lines, in case you're wondering. Also, Raine and Ryu are putting up the connections between the magic barriers. Who's behind it anyway? Elena was beginning to get worried."_

"Takada," the blue-haired boy leapt to the side to avoid a magic attack and continued running, keeping an eye on the two in front of him, "I don't know why she decided to wait to try it now, but it can't be a good thing."

"_Aah… that makes a lot of sense." _There was a moment of thoughtful silence,_ "So what do you plan to do?"_

"We're leaving the actual destruction of the source to the Guardian, while we just keep the numbers in check."

"_Roger. I'm now sending files through connections 3 to 7. You're being surrounded by monsters in area U. The numbers are 8.7 and 9.4."_

"Right." He stopped and noticed that Dark and Daisuke had also stopped their all-out bolt to who knew where. It looked like the connection worked perfectly and he was glad of that, seeing that he really couldn't give them a lesson with their life on the line. "So, no errors with the connections?"

Daisuke shook his head, "But what's with all the grid references? I've never been too good with them…"

Satoshi could only shake his head before turning the confused boy to look in the other direction, "If that's the case, you might want to look that way."

He watched, slightly amused, as both boys watched the quickly advancing creatures that were making a beeline after them and he took out a pistol, nodding at Dark. "Seeing that you have a long-range weapon, let's see if you can put it to good use." Not waiting for an answer, he sent off a rain of bullets at the creatures and then moved. "Don't stand in one place too long! Keep moving!"

Landing, he watched as to how the other two coped with the situation.

"They better not die…"

000

Shia flicked her blade casually and watched as another monster died under her skill. It wasn't rare for Guardians to actually have to participate in the battle, but the discharge that had been felt was too strong for just that and seeing that Akane had used desperate measures to keep them in check…

The woman jumped back as she saw another beam of magic shoot up into the sky. The main objective was to destroy the monsters without blowing up buildings along with it, but as the numbers increased, she wondered if they would be able to keep to the code. That was the one thing she hated about her job and she would never get used to it.

Children were being falsely accused to doing things that they would never dream of doing: they were branded as a sort of other race that needed to be completely destroyed before any more 'harm' could be done. They didn't seem to understand that everyone was born the same and that what they became reflected the treatment they received their entire life. The only difference was the power that was inside of them, and even then if it hadn't been for the ignorant humans, they would never be in this mess.

It was only because of people like Akane that she was fighting this battle: she would have left it to those in the wrong, but they didn't even know how to cope with a large dog most of the time. That girl really was too much sometimes.

Whipping around, she used an upward slash and spun around, catching two monsters that were coming too close for comfort. They were still increasing in numbers and this was beginning to worry her a bit. Lifting up her weapon, she scanned the area.

There was only really one way to finish it off.

000

Daisuke scrambled a bit to get out of the way as another monster was shot by someone in the Hit Squad, and looked at the weapon he'd been issued. It looked like an overly large stick that had been honed down with various symbols embedded in it and he waved it around experimentally. He honestly had no idea what he was supposed to do – seeing that Dark was currently trying to work the gun properly without shooting someone in the process – and gave a small start when he saw how much power the stick actually held.

But now what? He had no idea how he was supposed to use this weapon and he couldn't even control – or even use, now that he thought about it – his magic. If it was, that is. He seemed to forget to ask that question a lot and he really needed to talk to someone about it. It just seemed that the reaction he'd received all the past times – whether from his family, the general public or even Satoshi, Kain and Akane – seemed just a little over the extreme and that alone seemed to worry him.

_(You don't remember how to use that?)_ asked the little voice in his head.

(What are you talking about?) the redhead was perplexed as he moved out of sight again, wondering if he should be scared out of his wits and why he wasn't feeling that way, (I've never used this in my life. So how can I be telling myself--)

_(Of course you didn't use that in particular,) _the voice cut in patiently, _(You used a spear once, remember? Nearly spiked Saehara with that one. He wasn't too happy that time.)_

(…) Daisuke swallowed, (But that was when we were eight! Not to mention my parents weren't too happy with us playing there and all! Why'd you have to remind me…)

_(Because it's just like that, whether you were eight or eighty.)_

(But I'm not eighty!)

_(Yeah, and there's a monster above us.)_

Jerking up at this warning, Daisuke managed to jump out of the way as it hit the concrete, creating a dent and he sighed at this slightly: he was going to die, wasn't he? Not to mention remembering how he'd almost killed his friend with the weapon…

He gave a squeak of surprise as the monster came up to him at speed that wasn't natural and he whipped his only weapon out, braining it slightly as it slashed out at him. Dropping low, he noticed that he had actually hit the thing, but nothing was happening. Not to mention he'd nearly been sliced in half.

_(Okay, that didn't work,) _the voice said, trying to remain as optimistic as possible, _(Now, this time why don't you concentrate on the power in the rod and hope that something happens this time. So how about it?) _There was an awkward silence as it – or whatever it was – noticed that Daisuke was currently running for his life.

(How am I supposed to do that when it's trying to kill me!) he shrieked.

_(Well then, why don't you learn how to control the power in you! Huh!)_

(Great, just what I needed,) the redhead thought to himself ironically, (Now I'm having arguments with myself. Are you sure that you're just me or are you some sort of parasite?)

_(… I'm just going to say that I am NOT a parasite.)_

(Okay…)

"_Niwa, there are monsters approaching your left and right flanks, not counting the one that's already chasing you," _Kain's voice picked up desperately, _"Do you need me to call for back-up? Niwa!"_

(Fine then!) Daisuke didn't stop running until he'd reached a more deserted place and then stopped abruptly and whipped around, his only weapon held up in a sort of defensive gesture, "I would appreciate some help now, thanks."

The monster – and it's newly arrived companions – slowed down the pace, noticing that their quarry had finally given up on running. The redhead was relieved at this, seeing that he would have been knocked over and overwhelmed by their numbers alone; he never good at dealing with being tackled, to say the least.

_(Are you really going to do it then?)_

(Yes. And why are you so talkative today?)

_(Because if you die I will never be able to speak to you again.)_

(You have a strange sense of humor, you know.)

_(I guess you could say that. I guess you could say that I'm you and not you. It's a very confusing tale. Trust me.)_

(Does that mean you'll ever tell me why you're there?) Now that he thought about it, Daisuke had just come to accept the voice in his head since the death of his family and the whole running away deal, but now it just seemed strange. There was a sigh with this.

_(One day. For now, just keep focused.)_

"Right." He noticed that the monsters really seemed to be taking their time and it was beginning to get on his nerves. If anything, he just wanted this whole crazy dream to end so that he could at least attempt a normal life, but there was no chance of that happening.

"_Hiwatari and your cousin are busy at the moment," _Kain's voice suddenly cackled in the ear piece, _"We've got Zeike and the Hit Squad coming, but that will take time. Do you need help right away?"_

"Ah, no. I'll be fine… I think," he replied as calmly as he could. The monsters were still getting closer and were too disfigured to really comprehend. It was strange, Daisuke suddenly mused, but they reminded him of that monster when he'd been… what, seven? Five? Sometime long ago. Maybe they were just making a comeback; and that was not a good thing.

Cutting off these thoughts, the redhead waved his rod out, trying to keep them away from him as much as possible. They stopped for a moment, but then continued to move so Daisuke went back to concentrating on the magic in the rod and hoping that what he was doing would not lead to his doom.

_(That makes the two of us then.)_

000

Krad trailed a finger lightly over the barrier that had been formed all around the area. Although it was fuzzy and completely distorted at times, the blonde could see the world outside continuing their life like nothing was going wrong. He snorted at this, seeing their ignorance as one that could not really be explained: they had cut off an extremely large area and not even a crowd was forming because of it.

Maybe they were just ignoring the simple fact that they were actually in the wrong and that monsters were the cause of most deaths before someone had stepped in to fix it up. And they were the people who were forced into hiding because of them.

Why was it that they were fighting, then? What was their true purpose? Krad frowned as he continued to trace a line across the magical barrier, ignoring the battling that was held within.

It was strange. He'd felt like this had happened before. But this really was the first time anything like this had involved him. Sure, there were those times before, when he'd still been naïve to believe the righteousness between good and evil, but now… now it was just a vague pit of nothing.

They went hand in hand, and nothing would change it.

Celeste had proven it.

000

The monsters were getting closer and closer with each passing step, but this time Daisuke seemed ready for it, although he was still obviously afraid that it was going to fail greatly and that he was going to die soon. Once he thought he had what he needed he swung the rod out like he was using a baseball bat, seeing that he couldn't work out any other way to defend himself.

This time, however, instead of nothing really happening, the power that had been focused upon began to pulse on the end of the weapon and the monsters began to retrace their steps instantly. The closest one didn't get very far, seeing as the magic hit it first and then…

_(Was it just me or did it disintegrate or something?)_

(…)

He didn't get a chance to brood on it much because he ended up watching the last few monsters getting severed in half and Shia wiped the blood away deftly, the sword now hanging casually by her side. She gave him a reassuring smile that only just reached her eyes and she walked over to him casually.

"I'm assuming that this is your first time then?" she asked, and he nodded. "Tch. And you were sent into battle anyway."

"Uh…" Daisuke had no idea what to say, seeing that he was suddenly feeling very self-conscious as the rod continued to pulse. It was only now that she seemed to notice this and her eyes widened slightly.

"Did you do that?" she demanded.

He swallowed and nodded.

What surprised him was when Shia nodded in his direction and then spoke into her mouth piece, "Is there a central point yet?" She listened for a moment and then nodded, "I think this method will work, but I'm using someone else. The new child, you know. Right, him. I would usually ask someone more experienced to try this, but Akane, Satoshi and Kain are all preoccupied, so we have no other choice." She waited some more and then frowned, "I am well aware with what I'm doing and it won't hurt anyone! I'm positive. Yes, thank you."

When she was done, she noticed that Daisuke was now giving him a look of pure disbelief, "Was it something I said?"

_(Actually it was what you didn't say,) _the voice piped up and the redhead was inclined to agree, although it was too rude to put it in words, so he had to ask something else.

"Uh… what are you going to do, Shia-san?"

"Ah…" at this, she smiled slightly, "I'm not going to do that much, actually. YOU are."

"… What!"

_(Okay… that's a new one.)_

000

"She's going to try WHAT!" Satoshi demanded as he sent another monster flying off into space, "Why wasn't she stopped!"

"_Well, no one else was there to really discourage her and all we can do here is yell," _Milea said in self-defense, not liking all the yelling she was receiving, _"She promised that he would be alright, but I don't even know what she's going on about…"_

The blue-haired boy cut her off from his attention and scowled, now desperately trying to find a way out of the mess he found himself in. It wasn't that the monsters were very strong, but they kept on coming, and coming, and coming… there was no end to it.

He knew exactly what Shia meant by what she said, but the actual experience could drain all the power out of Daisuke, seeing that he had never used any sort of magic in his life. He had used it once as a small child, but it wasn't enough to endure what the Guardian was now asking.

Whipping around and blowing up a monster that had been approaching them, Satoshi wondered what Dark's reaction to this would be, seeing that he didn't even know what was going on. That was the problem of gaining newcomers who either didn't know how much danger they were in or how to even use their magic or defend themselves, for that matter.

It looked like he would just have to leave it to Shia. She knew what she was doing, but he still couldn't help but be at least a bit worried. Especially seeing who it was that was now being dragged into it. Answers needed to be provided before they got too deep within the power that was there, and the evil that was threatening to engulf themselves still.

"_Monster cluster behind you!" _warned Milea.

Satoshi did a double check on his ammo and counted on what he had in his inventory at the moment. Dark was close by and by the looks of it, he was running out fast. The blue-haired boy clicked his tongue in annoyance before drawing some conclusions and calculations and then beginning to put them into action.

000

"So this is what I'm supposed to do," stammered Daisuke, as he tried to keep up with Shia, who was occasionally decapitating monsters that got in their way, "I'm supposed to find the source and use the magic in the rod to actually destroy this… uh…"

"Portal," the older woman said, nodding as she looked around, "And it's not going to get destroyed; rather sealed. Since it has been formed and kept closed for centuries, it doesn't surprise me that it's opened. Even though the number of monsters around are beginning to worry me." She turned a moment to look at the redhead and then continued, "I would usually get someone else with more experience to do this, but you're the only one left."

"Can't you do it?"

"I'm… I guess you can say that my magic doesn't branch off in that direction," she chose to say, carefully arranging her words, "There are very few people who can do this job, because it involves manipulating magic that is not our own, but you can do it. The most I could have done was destroy it, but that leads to some after-affects that you really don't want to know."

"I… see…" (So that was why she was asking…)

_(See, you are special.)_

(Because I have a voice in my head?)

_(Very funny.)_

They continued on their way, battling where necessary, but usually leaving it to the Hit Squad – that were now split up into smaller groups – until Shia finally stopped running and looked at a small pothole that was just a few feet away from where they were standing.

"Here."

"Here? But we were here before," Daisuke blinked.

"Where it begins is where it finishes," she said calmly, "But this is the one portal area that doesn't seem to be streaming monsters every five second interval, so this is our best chance. I checked around all the points, but they all had to be covered. Too risky."

"I see… I think," it was strange, he had to admit, since he was being dragged into this like it was a sport of something, but Shia clapped him on the shoulder, making him start slightly. She had a really serious feel to her, but at the moment she was smiling at him again. He swallowed and smiled back nervously. He was going to die, wasn't he?

She seemed to have read his thoughts and the smiled widened just slightly at this, "Even if something goes wrong, I'm here to make sure that it doesn't. As a Guardian here, I have to be able to understand the interior and exterior of this land."

The redhead blinked at this, "Guardian?"

"We can talk about that later," she pushed him towards the pothole, "All you have to do is find the source in that hole and then push magic from the rod into it, making it unbalance and hopefully it'll seal itself up. If not, well… run for your life."

_(That's a great reassurance.)_

(Please…) Trying not to look too scared, Daisuke walked over to the pothole, hoping that nothing would just jump out at him and kill him. Thankfully nothing happened and for a moment he breathed deeply, to make sure that all of his nerves were still intact. Once he got his wits together again, he closed his eyes and tried to focus on the magic… however he was supposed to do that.

At first, there was nothing. But albeit fainting there was a thriving source that didn't really belong to the land itself. Thriving and moving at it's own pace, he could almost picture the streams of magic being released into the world, creating and causing chaos and destruction.

(Here goes…) he told himself, easing the grip on the rod and then allowing one of the ends to hover over the magic source, concentrating on the power. The charge really did feel strange and for a moment he felt light-headed, but it was gone almost instantly and he tried to keep himself focused.

On the sidelines Shia made sure that the barrier that she'd created before was completely intact before keeping an eye on the redhead. She knew that she would berated for this later, mainly from Satoshi, to say the least, but she needed to make sure that he could at least control the magic flow so that when he was taught the rest his magic would not go amuck. It was only a matter of time.

000

So that was it. Krad tapped a hand and then went back to his drawn conclusion of the barriers. It was his specialty – if one could call it that – so he would have to do his best. But it was strange: hadn't they destroyed it the last time, or had there been a lasting resonance?

The blonde didn't know, but that was what was annoying him the most and he sighed.

So it just had to happen again.

000

"_Magic drawn from the light and darkness… source of the life and death of the human race… don't cease to leave me on my own: watch over me and protect me. Thirteen elements awaken again and allow your voices to be heard once more. Don't abandon what you have been sent to do, don't be the ones who are lost. Draw us back together… don't let us be lost…"_

A voice he had never heard before. A voice of purity and sadness. It was one that wanted to be heard but could not. Who was it? Why were they calling for help? What was with the Thirteen Elements?

Daisuke could feel the power surging, but the voice continued to speak, it just wouldn't stop…

"_Awaken, for it shall be the time…"_

The portal was being sealed with the addition of magic and he failed to notice that Shia looked shocked. All he could do was listen and concentrate.

"_The evil is beginning to stir once more…"_

Then everything went black.

000

Zeike looked around and noticed that the appearances of monsters had finally weakened and stopped completely and he barked out at the other two, "We're going to clean this place up and move out. We don't have much time so pick up the pace!"

"Aye aye, captain."

"Ah… I want to sleep…"

"Move it!"

"Yessir…"

000

"So he managed to do it then…" Satoshi looked up at the sky, as the barrier began to fade slowly, "What does this all mean?"

Dark hit one of the monsters over the head with the barrel of his gun and looked at the other boy, "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing. Let's just deal with this first."

The former thief scowled but went back to whatever he'd been doing. Maybe once they got back he could worm some answers out of them; and see what had happened to Daisuke. Really, how the redhead managed to get so far away would always be a mystery to him.

000

A day after the battle led to Shia stepping out of her shop. "Akane, are you sure that you're well enough to actually go now? The barrier drained a lot of your magic."

"… I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Then take care. I will be considering the option though."

"… Thank you."

000

"Are you sure that Daisuke will be waking up today?" demanded Dark, and Satoshi scowled at him in annoyance. Krad couldn't take the other teen's demands and had left for the day, but since they needed someone to keep an eye on them…

"That's what Celes said. I'm not a healer."

"Argh…" he'd been sitting there the whole time since they'd returned to base, and word had gotten around, mainly due to need of more training and restrictions.

The blue-haired boy really felt like yelling, but Raine entered, looking around. "Takada-san's gone. We just got word from Shia-san."

"Not again…"

Just then, Daisuke cracked open an eye and groaned.

000

"Are you sure about this?" asked Akane, her back to the others as she looked over the balcony. The sky was quite clear and there had been no negative effects on the day's battle but she still felt drained.

"Yes, we're quite sure."

"And you're aware of the dangers and the promises you have to make? The situation you're getting yourself into?"

"We're positive. It may be a risk to everyone we care about, and ourselves, but we also know it's the only way. Trust us."

The redhead sighed and nodded slowly, "Well, if that is the case, then I have no other objection to it." She turned slightly to face those behind her.

"Then I welcome you and your sister, Harada-san."

000

Ooh! Riku and Risa are in the picture now! I'm going to go back now to answer questions (you know, the elements, Akane's power, what guardians are… and maybe Dark and Krad's relationship, who the hell Pierre is… the lot, if I can) and then something intersting may start… oh, and Celeste is… well, one day you'll know.

I have to say that this is one of my longest chapters and it could have been chopped into two, but meh, I wanted to get this over and now it is. Although I still have something against the fighting scenes…

I'm enjoying this a lot now. Are you?

_Reviewer Replies:_

Les Scribbles: Well, here's another really confusing chapter. Long too. o.O Well, I hope you enjoyed and I'm glad you liked the last chapter. This one… I really think it was a tad strange… thanks again!

Shadow Guardian of the Gate: I'm so glad you like this fic! I mean, I'm so happy! Anyway, here's the update and I'm hope it's to your liking.

Staryday: I actually don't know what I was thinking in the last chapter. But it sounds like it wasn't a bad thing, so I'm not complaining or anything. Why Daisuke talks to himself… well, now it's getting confusing. Is it a part of him or someone else:O I just don't know. Glad you liked that one line. Heh heh. XD As for the Dark-Krad-Dark's sister thing… eventually. Uh… yeah.

DoveofLight: Thank you so much for the comments you made on the first two chapters! I'm liked so… happy that you think that way and I'm so honored that you read this and actually enjoyed it! Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy the rest of the chapters!

And sorry for the French, everyone. I actually just used an online translator for those small parts because I can't speak French. Failed my last test, so yeah. Don't know what that has to do with the story. Anyway, if it was annoying you in any way I won't do it anymore, so yeah. Thanks for all the reviews again!


	10. Ten

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterisations, one too many new characters to contend with. Many, many subplots with the plot plots. Confusing, yeah? Oh yeah.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 10 ---

"_Light…"_

(… What?)

"_Dark…"_

(What's going on?)

"_Neither is evil… and together they must stand…"_

(What are they talking about?)

"_Otherwise the world shall fall into turmoil…"_

(Turmoil?)

The voice echoed in Daisuke's head clearly and it was the very same one that had been intoning about the Thirteen Elements. Collecting himself, he tried to work out what had happened: he had used magic and then the world went black. Very black.

That's right. He must've fallen unconscious.

The sound of Dark arguing with Satoshi was what made the redhead open his eyes and he groaned as a sort of numbing pain lanced through him. There was a dim light that filled the room so at least his eyes weren't going to die anytime soon, but he didn't feel like he could move and he blinked slowly.

"Daisuke! Are you okay!" yelped his cousin, looking worried.

"Uh…" he managed to croak.

"The spell must have been stronger than I thought…" muttered the blue-haired boy, obviously to himself, but the redhead heard. Slowly his world came into focus and he could only stare at the ceiling for a moment, trying to work out how he was supposed to convey his message. Dark was hopping around almost too anxiously for his own good, but there was no one else in the room to stop him. "Are you okay, Niwa-kun?"

Daisuke swallowed painfully, "I can't move."

"…"

"Hey! You said that he was going to be alright!" his cousin yelled indignantly, and Satoshi gave him a blank look.

"Well, he's still breathing and living. What more can you ask for?" not waiting for a reply, he got up and went to the door, "I'll go find someone…"

When he was gone, the redhead was still looking at the ceiling and Dark was looking furious. Or was it loss of pride? No one knew anymore. With, who had been hiding under the bed since the return of the last battle, hopped out and then gave Daisuke a quizzical look.

"Kyuu?"

"I'll be okay, With," he said, managing a wane smile, "But… what happened? Dark?"

"… Just don't do that again."

"What?" Daisuke would have sat up at this point, but since he was unable to, he could only turn his neck slightly to see his cousin facing the opposite wall.

"Getting caught in danger, being chased by people, I know what that feels like," Dark shrugged, "But you're really putting your life on the line this time, Daisuke. And what do you think I'll be thinking if you die right in front of me?"

"… Sorry…"

The purple-haired teen smirked and ruffled the younger boy's hair, "At the most, tell me when you're going to do it!"

"Hey! Dark, that hurts!"

---

Satoshi had just turned a corner, only to collide quite painfully into Kain, who had been running around aimlessly for the past half hour. Rearranging his glasses back into its usual position, the blue-haired boy frowned.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were helping the research team on the last battle," he said suspiciously. The boy shrugged and then sighed.

"Hiwatari," he started grimly, completely ignoring the last comment, "Don't you ever wonder what's going to happen to all the innocent people here? I mean, they haven't done anything and here they are, trapped in a world that really isn't their own."

Satoshi blinked as he walked past the boy, "I'm just amazed that you were able to say such an insightful thought."

"I… uh… what!" Kain whipped around, his brain just processing what had happened. "What did you say about me!"

Shaking his head, the blue-haired boy made his way down one of the corridors until he came to a door that was only half-closed. Pushing it open, three heads whipped around to face him and they stared at each other. Finally someone spoke up.

"What's going on now?"

"What are you doing here, Satoshi?" a person with long, dark ivy-green hair asked, looking perplexed and was currently trying to fold up a piece of cloth. Struggling for a moment, they finally gave up and tossed onto the bed next to them.

"Nothing that really concerns you," he replied, "I was wondering if you had seen Clara, by any chance."

"In need of a Healer again?" someone with pink hair who was a lot smaller than the rest suddenly popped up, her hair in pigtails. "Couldn't you just get Celes?"

"She's in a meeting, stupid."

"Don't call me stupid, Stupid!"

"What!"

"Calm down, you two," an older woman appeared out from behind the bickering two and hit them over the head with a medication bag. She had short, curly-ish brown hair and was wearing a plain t-shirt and jeans. "Right. So where am I supposed to be going?"

"Niwa just woke up, but he can't seem to move," Satoshi replied coolly, while the two arguing were now wrestling with each other and throwing random insults in the process. Clara nodded in understanding.

"I remember the first time you decided to try it out," she joked lightly as she edged past the two, "You didn't wake up until a week later. Your parents thought you were dead."

"I don't want to remember that."

Clara was nineteen and looked thoughtful as they returned to the room where Daisuke was now arguing heatedly with his cousin, who had decided to sit out of harm's way. Satoshi raised a brow at this, but didn't say anything while the Healer did her job.

"Are you feeling better now?" she asked briskly, not one into introductions; besides, she knew Daisuke, but he didn't know her. So it all worked out in the end.

"Yeah… uh…"

She smiled serenely at him as she pulled out a clear blue bottle and began to explain what she was doing and how it would help the redhead, who was just blinking. He understood what she meant most of the time, but it was still strange.

At the rate he was going, he wasn't going to be surprised anytime soon.

---

Milea was shuffling through a number of files and frowning just slightly, only half-focused on what she was supposed to be doing. It wasn't actually much, but she really wanted to get whatever she was supposed to be doing. And she was failing miserably. Oh joy. She rolled her eyes.

There was a knock on her door and she muttered them permission to enter. She no longer knew where the others were but it didn't mean anything; it happened all the time. Great, just great. "Come in, then," she called. The familiar creak of the door met her ears and then someone entered.

"You know you shouldn't work so hard, Milea," Leah said cheerfully. The blue-haired girl didn't turn; she meerly grunted. "That and you're bones are going to be all stiff by the time this is over and I didn't catch you this morning-- what's that you're trying to read?" The green-haired girl popped up next to her friend's shoulder and looked at it. "… It's blank."

Milea started, only noticing her for the first time, "Oh, it is. Sorry about that."

Leah grinned, "Spacing out, as usual. Even after all these years you manage to lose your way to the bathroom and back."

"Very funny," she snorted and threw the spare piece of paper at her head, "Now, what do you want?"

"I got bored with Zeike constantly yelling at the others, so I thought I'd help you."

The blue-haired girl shrugged, "Sure, if you want. Let's see… we're trying to find all the records on monster attacks and the barriers and lines that connect our world to the others."

"Sure," Leah dug through a draw and pulled out a stack of yellowed paper, "Will this do? And why are we doing this?"

"Hikari-san wants to know everything about the barrier now, for some reason," explained Milea coolly, flipping through another page and frowning all the while, "And if it's getting worse, we want to know at least a few things."

"Do you have any idea on how it happens the first time?"

"No. But all I can say is that if monsters are coming, it'll be chaos from all sides."

"Right." Leah muttered something else under her breath, but it wasn't loud enough for the other girl to hear it and soon the room was completely overwhelmed by paper, paper, and more paper.

---

"Hey, Hiwatari-kun?"

"…"

"What's a Guardian?"

Dark was sitting at the foot of Daisuke's bed and Satoshi was sitting in the darkest corner of the room, not doing anything. Once Clara had finished fixing the redhead up, she'd gone off to do something about the casualties in the last battle and then there had been silence for the last five minutes.

"A guardian?" repeated the blue-haired boy, as if he hadn't heard correctly, looking over the rim of his glasses, "A Guardian is similar to the beings with magic who don't hide from society, yet they strive to keep the balance in check, so that monsters cannot enter this realm."

"Balance?"

"It's not an easy thing to discuss," Satoshi sighed and rubbed his temples; he really needed some time off and why did everything have to spiral downhill after one little incident! "I would say something like good and evil, and that if one is too much, everything topples off into chaos, but that's not the only thing. Monsters appear, people get hurt, those who are suspicious get even more so; they believe that our 'sort' is the reason why the monsters are here in the first place.

"They refuse to accept the fact that without us, the balance would have been completely destroyed and then there would be no human race to speak of. But without the Guardians for each district, the place would be overrun with dead bodies and roaming monsters by now."

Daisuke frowned, staring at the ceiling, "Why are they so stubborn? Why do they kill their own kind because of one little difference?"

"They're scared." This time it was Dark who answered, and he didn't look happy about it, "They hate what's different. They want to rid of it, hoping that peace will continue if we're gone. But they're wrong, because like he said; without us, the world's finished."

"…"

With, who'd been sitting on Dark's head this whole time, looked up, curious, "Kyu?"

For a moment there was a bit of silence, but it didn't last for too long because something else came to Daisuke; and that came as a surprise, because he had more questions in his head than one could count. It was becoming quite tiresome for him.

"When I first got here, Akane-san said something about the power of 'Time' and then Kain said something about the 'Thirteen Elements'. What's that supposed to mean?" the redhead noticed that both his cousin and the other boy – mentor? Teacher? Some guy who was creepy? – flinched at this mention and Satoshi coughed slightly, like he'd been choking on something.

"About that…" he said slowly, weighing his words with each passing second, "… It will take a long time to fully explain the complexity of that nature, but I'll try to make it easy for you."

"You're really going to tell him?" Dark hissed.

"Nothing too drastic," the blue-haired boy hissed back. He then noticed that Daisuke was giving them long looks and blinked, before recollecting himself and getting back to the topic at hand. "Well, the first thing you need to know is that the 'elements' and 'Guardian' go together. There's a connection between those two words, okay?" the redhead nodded. "And then the 'balance' comes into the picture, which then goes to the 'barriers and portals', then to the 'condemned' and then to the--"

"Now I'm confused," cut in the purple-haired teen, "Do you always talk in circles so that you confuse everyone in the room?"

At this point, Satoshi would have jumped up and killed Dark there and then, but someone entered the room at that very moment and managed to catch hold of his arm before he got too far. Krad looked unimpressed at the sight of his half-brother lunging to kill a certain someone, but something told him that killing each other off wasn't the best time now.

"I'm assuming that he was being a total ass again?" he asked coolly, and didn't wait for an answer as he looked around, "I need to talk to the asshole anyway."

"What'd you call me!" Dark jumped up, fuming.

"What I think is known as the truth."

"Why you--"

Daisuke watched with faint amusement as the two older teens began to argue until Satoshi kicked them both out of the room in annoyance. Their bickering continued outside – this time accompanied with yells from other rooms to shut up – but at least his own room wasn't too bad.

The blue-haired boy cleared his throat.

"I guess I should just ask you how much you know about the elements."

"Eh! Uhm…" Daisuke strained in the back of his mind for a moment, trying to conjure up a piece of information. The problem was that everything was scattered and completely out of whack, bouncing from one place to another and it was now giving him a headache. He shook his head hopelessly, "I can't remember anything, besides the obvious."

"I see…" Satoshi frowned at the floor, unconsciously wiping his glasses for no reason at all, "Well, let's try from the very beginning:

"There are many worlds in this world, and they all branch out with each other, intertwining with each different element, that keeps the balance in the worlds. They are the main focus, where each element is equally powerful as another, and that's fine.

"The main elements are Fire, Water, Lightning and Earth. They're the elements that purely exist in our world, so that if we're destroyed, those elements go with it."

Daisuke interrupted at this, "So that means… that each world has their own element?"

"Correct. That's what's creates the barriers and lines between worlds, and when they are upturned, they break, which allows the monsters through," the blue-haired boy nodded and continued:

"From there is the branching elements, which contains the components of the basic elements. This includes: ice, poison, gravity, metal, nature, wood and wind. Again, there are world's that exist entirely on these elements, so that's what the balance is all about.

"If that was the only thing, though, then it wouldn't be as hard. Magic isn't just channeled through people and goes away when not wanted. It's always there. Some can sense it, others can't. But people don't seem to understand how important it is.

"Last is the three sacred elements, as they're titled, because they either compose of all the aforementioned elements, or don't have them at all. They are Light, Dark and Time."

"…"

"Light and Dark aren't as most people believe in as good and evil, yet that have stronger powers that allow such things at most. Controlling and watching over life and death, gifted with talents that scare even them, there are very few with such a power. As far as we know: none."

"Then…" mumbled Daisuke, "What about…"

Satoshi held up a hand for silence: "Time is just that. Just as we know it. It can control both life and death, holds most power than what anyone on this planet can imagine, and if not controlled properly – like Light and Dark, or all the elements together – if can destroy the world and everything on it. It's true power is always sealed away, and as for the wielder, who knows.

"There has only been one person to ever been known to have this power, and that is--"

"—Akane-san," finished Daisuke.

---

Having been told countless times to shut up of go bug some other poor person down the hallway, Krad dragged the other teen down to one of the less populated areas. Actually, it was completely deserted, but who cared? The blonde turned around and noticed that Dark had a smirk plastered firmly on his face; much like a statue.

Sometimes Krad did wish that the Phantom Thief would turn into stone.

"What?" he snapped, raising a brow.

"Well, I still can't understand why you're being so unfriendly towards me," huffed the other teen, still with that annoying smirk on his face. "I never thought you would be so…" he fell silent, trying to find the right word, but didn't. "Well, the fact remains is you don't even seem to care that I'm still alive."

"And why should I care?" hissed the blonde dangerously, "We might have fought on the same side at one point of our lives, but it doesn't mean that you weren't just annoying and getting in my hair. I was glad when it was over."

Dark narrowed his eyes, "And you don't even care about Celeste?"

"What does it matter. It's none of my concern."

If it had been at any other place, Dark would have killed Krad there and then, but didn't. The blonde crossed his arms – face half-hidden in the shadows – and watched as the former Phantom Thief struggled with all the thoughts running in his head.

He couldn't explain it. He hated Dark for past reasons; reasons that were pitiful and pretty petty, now that he thought of it. But there was their word to never see each other again; how had this happened? Why was his half-brother involved with a fight that they didn't need to be in? When Krad had first known this, he had freaked: the whole concept was ridiculous.

But not as ridiculous as it was true.

When Krad had found out that he was different from the rest – one of 'them', as his parents so loathingly put it – he wondered if he should run or hide. He ended up choosing the latter in the end, seeing that if he did run, they would find out sooner or later, and besides, his parents were part of the 'authority', which allowed him to gain information that wasn't exactly pleasant.

What happened – what it was that led him to getting to know Dark and certain others – changed his view in things, and that was also when he discovered that he wasn't the only one with certain powers. But when Satoshi got pulled into it, and even joined what would now become an all out war that was fought three-ways… he didn't know what to think.

The silence was broken by Dark. "It's been a long time since then, hasn't it. Who thought that we would be pulled into it again?"

Krad shrugged, "Guess we'll just have to deal with it."

---

Satoshi sighed and glanced at his watch; if he didn't leave for home soon his parents were going to be worried. Or as worried as two full-time working adults could be, he had no idea anymore. Waiting for Krad was one thing; being bombarded by a redhead who had just suffered loss of parents and a growing power in him was another.

Daisuke had wanted answers: but some of the questions had to wait. The problem was, there wasn't exactly a lot of time for anyone here, but he couldn't be the only one to explain it. That was where Akane came into the picture.

It was her fault for arguing a simple case to allow him to stay.

"_You know that this will put him in danger."_

"_You were the one who brought him here, Hiwatari-kun."_

"_I only want to make sure that he doesn't die."_

"_But you felt it too, didn't you? Power beyond power?"_

"… _I wouldn't put it that way."_

"_No. I guess not. But if you place Light and Dark together, you receive incredible power, correct?"_

"_I know."_

"_And if the lines break, what are we to do?"_

"_Are you proposing that we use him as a weapon? We know nothing about him except that he lost his parents. Don't you think that this is too much?"_

"_I know it must hurt… but we can tell him gradually."_

"_Something tells me you don't understand."_

"_Something tells me that you should just let karma be."_

"…"

"_Or did you forget about my 'unique' abilities?"_

She never spoke about her past, or about family or even where she'd been for the last few years. The two had met by coincidence at some sort of park and after realizing that they were in the same situation, that's where things went downhill.

The fact remained that Akane seemed to hate the mere thought of pain, thus starting a world beneath a world, and now… This.

An evil that wanted to engulf them.

But the strangest part was that during one of the meetings, the redhead had said one thing that kept running through his head: _"So it's repeating the cycle…"_

"Are you thinking too much again?" asked a voice next to his ear. Satoshi whipped around and noticed that Krad was standing behind him, looking bored.

"How long were you standing there?" he demanded, not knowing if he should be angry or relieved; maybe a bit of both would be good.

"I just got here. Let's go."

They left base just as the sun was slowly beginning to set, hidden by the tall gray buildings before them. Both boys were silent, lost in their own thoughts, but the nagging in the back of the blue-haired boy's brain told him that he should just try and nag the blonde for some answers.

"Krad."

"Hn?"

"How do you know Dark and I don't want the usual crap." Yep, right to the point this time.

The blonde looked surprised at the straightforwardness, but his face changed back to indifference half a second later. "You really want to know, don't you?"

"And you don't want me to know," Satoshi retorted simply. "And I think we have a right to know."

Krad gave him a long look, before placing both hands behind his head and looked at the slowly changing colours in the sky; "I suppose you're old enough to understand the complexity… but not here."

"When, then?" he asked testily.

"Let's just say tonight." The blonde decided. It would give him enough time to work out what he should tell, what he shouldn't tell, and whether he should mention about the connection between himself, the balance, and the evil they feared.

No. They didn't need to know that for now. Maybe some other time.

It was a very big maybe though.

---

Hey look, I managed an update! (rolls eyes) Well, at least I made it to chapter ten…

I have to admit that this is going to be longer than I thought, but with all the explanations I've got to work on now… and we may finally find out how Dark and Krad know each other. Pierre will become the annoyance of society and who knows; Shia may be back to teach Daisuke something about his magic…

We don't know that much about it, do we? Well, we'll just see…

_Replies:_

Les Scribbles: Eheh, I actually have to go back on the past chapters now so at least I can remember what I have to cover. But it's going to take a long time, I know it. XD I don't know about fun, though… it could all just be a wild rollercoaster ride…

Shadow Guardian of the Gate: You think? Er… I suppose it could be worse. This chapter was really toned down compared to the last one, huh? Don't know if I'll put more fighting scenes up soon, but we can hope, right?

Muh… I have no idea when I'll update this, but whatever. I'll find a way… thanks again for the reviews!


	11. Eleven

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterisations, one too many new characters to contend with. Many, many subplots with the plot plots. Confusing, yeah? Oh yeah.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 11 ---

Dark had somehow managed to find his way back to Daisuke's room and upon entering, instantly saw that his cousin was fast asleep. He was so peaceful like that; so much like a child that should have never been exposed to the dangers that was now before them. But as it was, the redhead had been dragged into the chaos and pain that was the reality of life, and it made Dark realise how he had failed in his promise to take care of the younger boy.

Since Daisuke's parents had found out about the boy's… unique abilities, they had panicked, naturally, not wanting their only child to be killed for something that couldn't be controlled over. But people in society had strange ways of finding magic-potential people, and that was something they couldn't risk. Not for a child who had no idea on what was going on.

As a Phantom Thief and an expert in magical artifacts and similar cases, Dark was turned into a sort of guard for the Niwa family. They never talked much, true, before all that, but he was treated like family should be, and he came to care for the redhead like he was his own brother. Teaching the boy had been easy – it was clear that he had Phantom Thief blood – but Dark had no idea what sort of magic Daisuke possessed, so he couldn't put a hand in that to help the boy with those particular problems.

Emiko, Kosuke and Daiki… they never deserved the fate they received.

Grinding his teeth with uncontrollable rage, the purple-haired teen knew all too well the pain the younger boy had suffered, especially with the witness of his death. It was little wonder that he had been so scared; he had had to run, otherwise he would have been dead by now, and Dark did whatever he could to protect the boy and make sure that others didn't chase him. That was where black wings became quite useful, since they were a superstitious lot and… well, it had worked well enough.

And although he had no idea at the time, Daisuke was in safe hands. It was hard for the both of them, but knowing what had been faced by others; there were many who were suffering terribly. It was a never-ending cycle to nothing but pain and agony, and humans were just too dense to realise that they were putting themselves in danger by destroying those who could protect them.

Confusing, perhaps, but it was something that they would soon have to learn for themselves.

And it had been something the Phantom Thief himself had had to learn the hard way. Even those times when he had been with _them _it was hard, confusing, painful…

He never wanted to see Daisuke hurt like that. He was too innocent, too young, and he had suffered enough already. Separated from the people he loved and left with fragments of memories that could only be relived in dreams, hiding away from the people he once lived alongside… anymore pain and he might as well be dead.

True, he couldn't hide the boy and smother him away from the reality, but he knew that he could still protect the boy, to help him heal; they were family after all.

Damn. Celeste would have known what to do.

But that had been the mistake in the first place, and she wasn't going to come back anytime soon. It was best to go forward, keep an eye out for trouble, and make sure that no more people got hurt anymore.

Yet since it was beginning all over again… the loop that no one wanted to witness was back, and there was absolutely no way to avoid it this time. It may have been sealed, but had it been stronger than that? Had it been biding its time and waiting for the right moment? What could be done about it now and were they strong enough to actually destroy it this time?

Or would it destroy them first?

It was all in a matter of time that they would find out. It wasn't like they had a lot of time in the first place, but if the trigger of events were true, then the only way to find out was watch, prepare, and wait. Nothing more could be done than that.

And yet… the boy's abilities. What were they exactly? Dark had a couple of theories in his mind, but until it was proven true, he would have to tread along that path very carefully. Daisuke was strong, but this topic was quite unusual, so who knew how he would react. It involved a lot about his past as such, so it would hurt a lot.

Everyone knew that from the start though. Monster attacks were becoming more frequent, and people were blaming the magic potentials more than ever. They hated the truth that it was their fault in the first place, but they were too stubborn to admit it and to help the fight to protect them. That and the world; not just their world, but the worlds that connected to it. They all had to be in balance for peace to be definite, but how could it happen? Humans were stupid when it came to that.

Dark jerked out of his thoughts and muses as Daisuke rolled over, mumbling something under his breath. Taking a seat next to the bed, the purple-haired teen watched him closely, wondering when it would all end and what would become of them.

In many ways, he didn't even want to know.

---

"_If you knew a place once called home,_

_if you believe everything that was said and done,_

_would you remember me once more?_

_Would you know me again for who I was?"_

"_Lost is the word that is,_

_death is the word that does,_

_love is the warmth that flows,_

_life is the one long ago._

_Why do we care? Can you not see?_

_Why is it that no one understands what we mean?"_

_Words that flowed endlessly from one room to another; words that made sense, yet no sense. A place of security and warmth; a place he had grown up in for all he could remember. And yet… he could tell that something was missing. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it was there, and it worried him; even if he was only a small child._

There was a sad ring to the words. Or, at least, that was what the feelings sounded like to him. His mother loved to tell him stories and poetry, yet this one was so… different. No real rhyming was one thing, but the reasoning behind the words was something that could not be placed. Not for a child who still had a lot to learn, anyway.

Why was his mother sad though? He couldn't understand it. Sure, she had been uptight since that time at the park when the weird scary thing had attacked him, but why was she still upset? He was okay now and that was all that mattered, right?

Apparently not.

He was supposed to be asleep, but he couldn't. He was scared; he didn't know why he was, he was just scared. Maybe of something he'd seen…

Or because of his family being all upset and uptight.

The words had stopped and now a normal conversation could be heard below. Crouching by the railings, he listened; curiosity getting the better of him, as always. Sentences that made no sense to him reached his head, and still, he listened.

"—but what will they do? We cannot let this happen!"

"There is no way to contain it or hide it. We have no choice."

"They can't do this!"

"They don't understand, that's why."

"Why him? Why did it have to be him! We never asked for it…"

"We know. But we still have to face the facts that they'll find out and he'll be labeled as dangerous. We cannot avoid it."

"My son is not a monster!"

More yelling, more crying, more words that made no sense. And he was still scared. Not knowing what they were talking about, not knowing who was going after who; it was all too much.

Crawling back to his room, he had no idea on what he was supposed to think. As a child, he wasn't supposed to know, was he? He couldn't understand it all, but it involved him being around, right? It had to be his fault… if they were talking about him and all the yelling and crying that had followed after it…it hurt so much.

Did the angels up in the sky understand? He hoped so; at least one of them knew what was going on. Not to mention he would more definitely forget about all this until, for one reason or another, it was necessary. Was it? No… he didn't know what to think anymore…

"Falling tears that know no end,

ceaseless pain for all who trend.

Lost in the heart of the ones we lost,

Come back to me…

Don't cry for me…"

---

As the two half-brothers expected, neither parent was at home. Which was considered a good thing for Krad, who didn't want them to overhear what he would be telling Satoshi; since it would be a sure case of getting them to be condemned and killed and all the usual junk they did? All the pointless stuff that was a waste of time because everyone else was so superstitious, but what could they do about it? Nothing, so that was the answer to it all.

There was nothing they could do in the end; it was kill or be killed, and by the looks of it, this world was fighting against themselves. Humans with no understanding in the magic concept feared it, didn't want to know about it, and so forth destroyed those with it. This also led to their doom, as they would soon come to witness, if his calculations were correct.

And they were always correct. Or very close to correct; so no one could question them. They never had before, so why start now?

Satoshi had been staring at the concrete floor and saying nothing, but that wasn't anything new anyway; seeing as they didn't talk much to each other in the first place. They were a sort of split family within, so that would make a lot of sense. But they were happy as they were, so why try to ruin it; no one cared enough anyway.

But something about Krad knowing Dark and all had to mean something to them. And it might actually help them to fight against whatever it was they were fighting against. No one was quite certain of this dark and evil foe – Satoshi snorted at this – but it was best to gather as much information as possible before trying to fight against it properly. At this point, it had been more of a hit-and-run process, and it was clear that everyone was getting sick of the standoff-like-situation. Although it was a lot safer than just rushing in, people were still being picked off slowly behind their backs.

Once they were in Krad's room, Satoshi gave him a pointed look, "Okay, spill it. What's going on, how do you know Dark, and why the hell have you been refusing to tell me all this beforehand?"

The blonde clucked his tongue and shook his head at his younger half-brother, "My my, you're rather impatient, I must say. Although I can't blame you; seeing as it's really getting a bit bothersome; and not only because of the society going against people with magic."

"I really couldn't care less about that at the moment," snapped the blue-haired boy, "You know something and I just want the questions answered. So just explain all this already and I might consider leaving you alone."

"You always leave me alone, and that was a good thing," he replied calmly, a small smirk playing on his lips, "But I suppose it does concern everyone… in a way. And I am sure you already know about what is going on, so there would be no point of me explaining that to you again.

As for why I never told you and kept on changing the subject and avoiding… well, it's a lot better if you didn't know about what I'm going to tell you, and the other reason was to annoy you," the smirk widened at the glare on Satoshi's face; "And I've known Dark for a while now, if that's what you're wondering as well."

"Well, obviously," the blue-haired boy impatiently rolled his eyes, "But I'm not asking about your actual relationship with him; I just want to know why you know him and in what circumstances."

Krad mused thoughtfully for a moment, "I suppose telling you that now won't hurt… too much. It's what comes after that might make you think a bit more," he grimaced, "Not that you'd need that." Pointedly ignoring the glare shot at him, he continued coolly, "Whole damn story is a lot longer than I would like to think of it; so let's just start it from the top…"

---

Walking down the street while engrossed with some thick volume of something or other, Krad muttered random thoughts to himself as he tried to make sense of what was going on. Strange and somewhat frightening things were occurring and no one could explain what it all meant. That was probably the worse part of it; but they had said something about 'them'.

Those who could use magic. Those who were controlling a force that normal beings should not have possessed in the first place. It was dangerous, it was unwanted; and all those who had it and were caught were sentenced to death.

The blonde shuddered. He had seen what happened to the poor fools and it wasn't the most pleasant of sights. Why he had seen them; maybe his parents were hoping he'd follow in their footsteps once he was old enough, seeing as he was only thirteen at the current time. But he didn't like it one bit; sure, he could be cold at times and uncaring, but it didn't mean he went off and killed people because of something they couldn't control.

Well, that was one reason, but the other one was more risky, due to the fact that his parents were… that kind of people.

But being able to use magic himself… it had freaked him out a lot as well. He didn't know how and when he got it, but he had it now and that was the point. Nothing could change that and he wasn't about to confess to the sadistic, suspicious freaks who were his parents. They couldn't give a damn if their own son had magic or not; just hand him over for torture and kill him and then they would all celebrate for wiping out another one of "them".

It was only a few weeks back when he'd found out exactly what it was he could do; what he could control. It had come so suddenly it was scary, yet compelling, but he had had to speak to someone who knew what was going on.

The people already sentenced to death were willing to help those who were free, as he soon came to notice.

"So you just found out about it?" chuckled a teenager with dusty blonde hair, waving a chained hand at the ceiling nonchalantly, "Well, I've had it all my life, kept it a secret, and then my parents get caught out, get killed, and here I am now. Great, huh?"

Krad raised a brow from the other side of the cell, "I don't care about your life story."

"But you're still here," the other boy pointed out calmly, smiling thinly, "Most of the guards just walk away because they think that we can't do anything in this condition. Sure, it took me long enough to come to my sense and recover, but I can get out fine."

"And end up as a fugitive," the blonde finished bluntly.

"Heh, true," the smile widened at this, "I like you. Never had any friends before cause I knew that they'd get hurt if I stayed around them. But you're different. And I mean besides the fact that you have it as well and others haven't had a clue on it."

Crossing his arms and looking incredibly bored, the blonde inspected the iron bars, "And your point is? You get out, you run away, you get caught, you die. What's the point of getting attached to people if you're going to lose them anyway?"

The boy inclined his head, thinking about it, "True, I suppose. But hey, if you help me, I can teach you how to control that magic. I don't care about dying in the end, but if I can help someone who can remain free and able to control what they have, it'd be all I want. I mean, I've already lost my sister yesterday…" he faltered, letting an awkward and stiff silence fall over them.

"… If you're waiting for me to say 'sorry about your lost', you're going to be disappointed," Krad finally said in the end, breaking the silence. He froze, hearing someone entering the prison area and bent down, "But you have a point about the magic. I can help you get out, if you want, and hide you, but you better not think about betrayal or it'll be YOUR head on a pike."

There was a thin, humorless chuckle at this, "What would be the point of betrayal now? But no matter. I accept." They couldn't shake hands, but the looks on their faces were enough, "You're that Hikari kid, aren't you?"

"Krad."

"Yeah, okay. I'm Kirio. Nice talking to you."

---

"Wait, 'Kirio'?" cut in Satoshi, snapping out of his listening to give his blonde half-brother a long, long stare, "Isn't he that--"

"Yeah, that's him," was the dismissive reply, "He was the only guy to get out alive of that place, and only because I helped him. They all say he perished and they didn't even know his name, so that's what made it even easier for him to keep undercover."

"But as our GARDENER!"

"It works," Krad snapped waspishly, "And even you didn't work it out, did you? But just meeting him and knowing him was enough to get him to try and make me meet Dark… I never understood his reasons behind it though… and I still question it, even now…"

---

"So controlling magic is all about concentration and determination?" intoned Krad in a bored voice, not getting a thing that the other boy was getting at. Kirio nodded energetically, having gotten over his ordeal with the prison as such, but his hyperactivity was really beginning to get on the blonde's nerves.

Having already gone off and dyed his hair jet black and now seemed to have the tendency to wear sunglasses, the boy ignored the fact that he was beginning to annoy the person who'd saved him. They were in the blonde's room, which didn't have much besides the bed, table, and a bookcase, and seemed more interested with bouncing around than anything else for the time being. "It's all a matter of knowing what you want to do and doing it." He explained patiently, "You see, people think that we can't control what we're doing and that we don't know what we're doing, but they're in the wrong. Sure, you get those insane people who ruin our reputation by corrupting the magic that they possess, but we seem to have a committee for that… or, at least, we used to have one… until normal people began to… well… you know what I mean."

"…" Krad raised a lazy eyebrow in acknowledgment but didn't say anything; besides, they already knew what they were talking about. 'Them' again, as usual.

"So as I was saying," Kirio picked up, like there hadn't been a pause in the conversation, "It all depends on our actions in the matter. If we're in danger, then there's a good chance that we'll use our magic to get out of it, right? And if we just want to mess with people's minds, we'll do that as well. To put it simply; magic doesn't act on its accord. Someone HAS to be controlling it for one reason or another. Just because you're having a dream doesn't mean you'll set the house on fire; you have to be fully conscious of it and that's where being manipulated and hypnotized come at a disadvantage. Since the aren't acting on their own free will, there's no chance of using them as a puppet of destruction."

Again, the blonde said nothing, and that was all for the day's lessons. The other blonde – who now had black hair – left the house, which was empty, and Krad was left with his own thoughts and trying to put into practice his own magic. Stupid kid hadn't helped much except the 'all about you and your determination' concept but noting else besides that. He could assume some of the simpler things – like the fact that there were probably different aspect of magic and the like – but knowing what type and all that other stuff would be a lot more complicated.

The next day Kirio burst into the house in an excited frenzy and jumped around like a lunatic. The first thing that came to mind was that he'd had too much sugar in one go and it was time to lock him out until he'd calm down.

"What are you doing here?" snapped Krad, not liking the fact that he did have this lunatic in the house (thankfully both parents were out) and that said lunatic was too happy for his own good, "Get out of my house before I call the cops."

"Gee, and yesterday you were the one who helped me get out of that place," came the snorted reply as Kirio bounced around some more. "Come on, I can take you to some real professionals that can help you with your magic," he grabbed the blonde by the wrist and tried to tug him off the couch, "Come. On!"

But Krad wasn't about to move anytime soon, and it was clear by the glare he shot at the hyperactive teen, that he wasn't going to mess around or take it lightly. "I don't really care about that. All I wanted to know is how to control it and I've done that, haven't I?"

Shaking his head firmly, the former blonde tried to pull him up without much success and then sulked visibly as he tried to reason with him, "You never know! There are people around the place that have stronger magic than others and that's a lot harder to control! You have to remember this and this is serious business! Now let's get moving already! We don't have all day!"

"True," agreed Krad firmly, turning a page of a book that was easily within reach, "And I have a test I have to study for, so leave me alone."

"I hate you." Kirio finally gave up and sulked.

"Good for you. Now get out of my house."

Scarily enough, the teen did as he was told and the rest of the day passed uneventfully. Not that Krad really wanted anything to happen…

---

Late that night – again, his parents were out very, very late – the blonde stared blankly at the ceiling and began to count the cracks in it, calculating on how long it would eventually take for the roof to collapse in on them and kill them all. It seemed highly unlikely for the time being, but it was better to be safe than sorry, and besides, he would be out of the house by then, wouldn't he?

That was the last thing on his mind and staring at the ceiling was just so… inspiring. That was probably the wrong word to use, but he couldn't give a damn about it. Day in and day out people were just trying to live normally and deny the fact that people with magic lived amongst them. Denouncing friendships and family bonds, it was just so pointless in the end and he just didn't understand it anymore. They were fighting against themselves, in truth, and maybe that was the thing that honestly bugged the hell out of him.

But his very random rambling was interrupted when he noticed that someone was opening his window; from the outside obviously, otherwise he would have seen them in his room. Nevertheless, if someone was trying to get in, he'd just have to stop them; not that they had anything valuable, but that was besides the point at the moment.

So he did what any smart teen would do: he grabbed a heavy textbook, sauntered over to the window, yanked it open, and brained whoever it was. The fact that the person managed to keep his balance after such a horrible ordeal was admirable, but the blonde never paid much attention to the world around him aside from all the killing and 'cleansing', whatever the hell that was.

"Oi, shit!" was the muffled yelp he heard from the person he'd just brained, "That hurt you know!"

"Then get off our property and I'll consider not throwing more heavy object at your head," retorted Krad calmly, keeping the textbook at close hand, as he proceeded in shutting the window to get back to his staring-at-the-ceiling ritual. But the person didn't seem to want to quit anytime soon and shot a hand out to stop the blonde from closing it. "What, do you want to get brained now?"

A derisive snort, "And here I was, being told that I'd find a really strong magic-potential and who do I have to meet; a snottish blonde who doesn't give a damn."

Krad managed to punch whoever it was hard, "You know, I could just call the cops and it'd be over. And if you ever call me that again, I'm going to make you wish that you'd never been born."

"You bastard--"

"Dark, you idiot! What's keeping you!" a definite female's voice floated up to them, "We don't have anymore time! Come on!"

"Tch," the person turned away to yell back, "Fine! Just give me a sec to teach this guy a lesson!"

"We don't have time!"

Ignoring this, the person blinked when he noticed that Krad was now shining a flashlight at his face, looking bored with one eyebrow raised. Then he smirked in a teasing manner, "I suppose you want to tell me something, blondie?"

Krad decided not to take the bait, "What the hell do you want anyway?"

"Someone recommended it to me, so I thought I'd check it out," the purple-haired teen shrugged, "But I suppose you're just going to go and call the cops cause you can't fight for yourself and all that. Well, I shouldn't be wasting my time here. Later." He jumped down and landed neatly before sauntering away with a swagger, knowing that the blonde was still watching him.

"Hey!"

Dark turned around, only to get a faceful of magic that knocked him off his feet. Spluttering, he fought the strands for a moment and flailed about. Krad's mocking-laughter reached his ears and he spluttered indignantly.

"You're gonna pay for that!" he bellowed.

"Whatever, asshole."

Slamming the window shut, Krad flopped back on his bed, listening to the faint sounds of the teen below as he fought to gain control of the magic that was wrapped around him and continued to count the cracks in the ceiling. It wasn't like he had much else to do.

---

A week passed and nothing honestly happened, aside from the random we caught this person ritual where innocent people were put on trial because the rest of society had nothing else to do worth while. People were afraid all the time, and while the 'monster' were still living amongst them, it would remain so. Sure, as Kirio had said, there are some who are bad and do wrong, but it wasn't like people weren't like that either. With their pitiful reasons of conquest as such, it was just sad to watch them flail around like morons.

The blonde himself had had to face Kirio a number of times to learn about magic and all that stuff – not anything too new, but you needed someone to supervise once in a while – but he did mention some guy called "Dark" and how he was all pissed off because of some "blonde who had a pole up his ass", but Krad didn't say anything and the teen gave up in three days. Sure, the purple-haired jerk had no right to call him that, and if they ever came face to face again, he was going to wish that he had never been born. No one had the right to insult him in any way and he wasn't about to let it go.

It was Sunday night that he met the stupid-purple-haired Dark. And his parents were out as usual.

To put it simply, Krad had gone off for a walk down the street at eleven forty-five, which meant that there was no one around to tell him off for doing such a stupid and dangerous thing. It was a rather cloudy night and the dim lights of street lamps were all that could be seen. Sure, there might have been one house or so that had their lights on, but he didn't give a damn about them.

Returning home with emotions that bounced mostly around the grim spectrum, the blonde ran right into Dark, who was just about to walk out of his house.

Naturally, Krad punched him and he was out like a light. He raised a brow before shrugging and hearing a surprised shriek. Turning, he saw a young girl with the same wild purple shade of hair rush into the scene.

"You killed him!" she yelled accusingly.

Reaching them, she kicked Dark hard in the ribs, "Wake up, you stupid, stupid Dark!"

The crumpled boy stirred and groaned. "Can't people be a bit more respectful once in a while?" he grumbled. The girl spun around to meet a bemused blonde in the eye.

"You're the one who knocked him out first!" she snapped waspishly, "So you're just going to have to invite us in until he recovers!"

Krad shook his head slowly but allowed them in; people did some strange things these days. And it was probably made worse by the fact that they had purple hair. How many people have naturally purple-coloured hair anymore? No wonder they were a bit insane.

…

When Dark had recovered, there was nothing to be done about his already injured pride, so he just sat on one of the sofas and sulked, glaring at a wall. The girl was suddenly very cheerful and talkative again, asking Krad many, many questions as he reluctantly served some tea (being the 'host' and all, there was nothing to be done). The scariest part about her was the fact that she was speaking to Krad like they had been long-life friends or something.

And that in itself was enough to give the blonde chills.

"So thought you'd take a look around?" Krad finally asked Dark, who didn't turn to reply.

"Just thought it would be nice to see where you lived."

"Yeah, even nicer if my parents were to catch you. You would be hung by now, I expect." His tone betrayed nothing, but inside he was disgusted. Even though it happed all the time and there usually wasn't any sort of public killings, he could hear them, screaming in pain and the like, and it was just disgusting.

"Wow, I'm surprised they ended up having you as a kid."

This time the blonde stalked over to face the purple-haired teen, who was smirking again, "Are you referring about what you think my personality is, or the fact that I can use magic?"

"I don't know, both?" Dark seemed nonchalant as he waved a hand about, "But family would protect you, wouldn't they? They wouldn't let their precious children get dragged into the hands of the tainted and unwanted."

He seemed to be kidding around, but Krad snatched his wrist and they met eye-to-eye, "I wouldn't count on that, you know. But it's obvious that your own lives aren't all comforts." He nodded at the girl, not knowing her name, and Dark stopped smirking.

"Why would you care?" he asked.

"That," Krad let go, "is none of your concern. Now get out before someone catches you and I'll be put on the wanted list as well."

Dark did eventually move, but more slowly, looking at the blonde as if noticing him for the first time. "Let's go." He muttered to the younger girl, who shook her head. Pushing her ahead of him, he turned once more to face the blonde. "Name's Dark by the way. Kaitou Dark."

The blonde snorted softly, but introduced himself as well, "Krad Hikari."

Nodding, the purple-haired teen was nearly out of sight, but then said something, almost thoughtfully, "Our parents aren't that much different then, are they? Almost as soon as they found out we were magic-potential, they planned to hand us over or kick us out. Took the latter in the end, not wanting to see 'leste cry, but they always were bastards in the end."

"I couldn't care less about what my parents thought of me."

"But they don't know. That can come to be an advantage," Dark waved a hand around, "We should talk some more when we have more time. And on better terms."

"What makes you think we're on better terms?"

"We aren't? Well, my kid sister will come up with something and you'll have to give in. Then you can meet the rest of the gang and I'll explain the rest."

Something about that caught Krad's curiosity, "The rest?" he repeated.

The Kaitou was smirking again, "Yep. But you'll have to wait to find out, huh? Later." And then he was gone. Only to be yelled at by his sister, who was not happy the least and the blonde was left to think about what had just been said.

---

"And so that's my life story," Krad finished, not looking the least bit interested with what had happened in his life, "Before mother died and all, then father married your mother and here I am."

"But that wasn't all that long ago," Satoshi pointed out instantly, "And this was five years ago."

"Yes," he agreed, "There is obviously more to it, but you have to eat something now. So get out of my room."

The blue-haired boy allowed himself to be pushed out, "You never eat either."

"I don't need to eat."

"So you claim."

"Just shut up. I have nothing more to say to you."

"Whatever. You never answered the question properly though."

In many ways he had, but someone was missing. Something important, and Satoshi wasn't going to let it go until he had all the pieces of the puzzle in place. Who knew; it might actually help them.

---

Neither Dark nor Daisuke said anything when the redhead woke up a few hours later. Sure, Dark have been sleeping and all, but now that there were both awake, it seemed that they should really say something, but just couldn't. The awkward silence was very… awkward.

"… Hey… Dark…" started the redhead, not really knowing what he wanted to say. Sure, he had many questions, but was his cousin really the right person to ask? Sure, he was used to running around the place and such, but it didn't mean he would know anything in particular.

The purple-haired teen looked up from staring blankly at a wall and then faced the hesitant boy. There would have been more silence at this point, but they were rudely interrupted when someone burst into the room, followed by two others.

Dark was the first to recover and he jumped up, "Don't people know how to knock here!"

"You're one to talk," muttered Daisuke, looking down, "Akane-san?"

Grinning slightly as she got up, Akane inclined her head in Dark's direction before turning to face Daisuke, "So, are you feeling better, Niwa-kun?" she asked, ignoring the fact that the two people behind her were hovering around in the background, hidden by the shadows. He nodded, and strained his eyes to take a better look at the other two. Akane noticed this and turned around, "Come on, you two. We can't hide this forever," she muttered, before turning back, "These two are willing to help us with the fight, so I thought it would be best to show them around, you know?"

The redhead was about to say something, but the two figures moved forward and one practically threw themselves onto him, hugging him tightly. Next to him, Dark just gaped silently, as Daisuke was lost for words; but that didn't last for long.

"R-r-r-r-r-Risa-san! Riku-san!"

---

And not only does Satoshi get the beginning of a long and heroic (sarcasm intended) tale that Krad knows, Daisuke sees the two most unlikely people to ever get involved with a magic-based fight. There will be more talk, more warnings, and more lessons that will proceed so… yeah. Sorry for the wait, though.

Much thanks to kyo's little koneko (you mean the cliffhanger?) and SapphireAzumarill (thanks!) for reviewing. And everyone who reads. It means so much to me!


	12. Twelve

DISCLAIMERS: I don't own DNAngel, or anything else. Understood? I'm sure you do... and, no, I don't own my brain either. It owns me.

WARNINGS: Uh... evil to such well-loved characters, slight (very, very slight) use of coarse language, horrible and bleak descriptions, strange characterizations; one too many new characters to contend with. Many, many subplots with the plot plots. Confusing, yeah? Oh yeah.

--- Darkened Heart ---

--- 12 ---

The term 'state of shock' was something that could not be denied, as the redhead was completely frozen in his sitting position at the revelations of his two former best friends. It seemed to be too much for his brain to handle, and he probably would have fainted if it wasn't for the fact that it was indeed a reality. Dark, who had been on vague speaking terms with the twins, just gaped slightly, as he attempted to regain his composure, which didn't seem to be working all that well. Akane, on the other hand, just stood around in the background, not wanting to interfere with the little 'reunion' although no one was actually saying anything… yet.

It was Risa who ended up breaking the silence: "Daisuke! We thought you were dead and we were so worried about you! Especially Riku! Do you know how much she panicked when she first heard that you'd been taken to the stake!"

Riku, who was hugging the redhead around the neck, frowned, "Risa! I was not panicking that much!"

"Yes you were! We all were!"

"Well… you make me sound like I was about to run around screaming down the streets in search of him!"

"It looked like you were!"

"Risa!"

"Uhm…" Daisuke finally seemed to manage to pull out of his shocked silence and swallowed slightly, "What… exactly are you two doing here… might I ask?" It seemed that the shock had affected his way of speaking as well, and Risa couldn't help but giggle as she plonked herself at the end of his bed and Riku finally let go of his neck.

Swinging her legs, the long-haired brunette looked over at him, "We want to help. We all heard about what happened to you and that was so appalling! I can't believe that they would even consider doing that to you and I just hate them and it's…" she seemed to be struggling for words but then gave up with a sigh.

Riku picked up where her younger sister left off, "We knew that you were in a lot more danger than any one of us would have thought possible, so Risa and I decided to look up what was there, what we'd heard on the streets, and we came to some dire conclusions. We were lucky enough to meet Takada-san on the way and, since she found out that we already knew the situation, she allowed us to join up and I couldn't believe it! You! Here! I mean… what?" She seemed to be at a loss at this, and then focused her attention on Dark. "And why are you here and never told us! We thought you'd gone off and finally dropped dead for once!"

This definitely shook him out of his stupor, "Hey, I'm not that old!"

"You are too! Pedophile!"

"Now that was uncalled for! Just because your sister likes me…"

"And you keep leading her on!"

"Riku--" whined Risa, who was now clutching her head as the shouting match continued, "You're giving me a headache and it's not nice! Don't be so mean to Dark-san!"

At this, the short-haired brunette whirled her attention around, lowering her voice just slightly, "Why shouldn't I be mean to that stupid stupid idiotic pervert? And you should know by now that we're dealing with one of the lowest beings possible here! That!" she pointed a finger at the indignant Dark, "Is the sort of scum that we should actually be avoiding!"

"Eeeeh? But he's Daisuke's cousin!" retorted Risa, pouting, "Doesn't that mean that you're calling him scum as well! You're so mean and we all know that you have a--" Riku covered her sister's mouth before the sentence was finished and coughed slightly, her face flushed.

"In terms of Daisuke being related to that stupid guy over there," she muttered, "I guess you can say that Dark is definitely the black sheep of their family."

"Now that's really demeaning on my reputation," the thief said loudly, frowning at her, "You shouldn't talk about a guy until they're out of the room."

Sticking her tongue out at him in reply, she calmed down and finally stopped gagging her sister, who gasped for air a bit. Having switched back to a more friendly figure of notion towards the indignant thief, she completely ignored him again and turned her attention to Akane, who had said nothing.

"How much time do we have then?" she queried.

"Hm… it really depends in the end, doesn't it?" she replied airily, looking around the room like it was the most interesting of things possible. "But who knows; I'm suspecting sooner rather than later."

"What?" lost, both Daisuke and Dark stared at her, waiting for an explanation. It was not long-coming.

"Ever since that last battle we had to get involved in, it seems that whatever's behind it is going to come at us at full force," Akane said, "I mean, that has to be the first time ever that the Squad has actually had to come with every available member, and that's saying a lot."

"You mean you don't even know what's behind all this?" Dark asked, scowling again.

"Sadly, no," she shook her head, "We have suspicions and theories, but they really don't help in the end. We need complete and solid evidence, and until then, all we can do is wait it out and prepare. I need to talk to Hiwatari about all this though, and his brother." At this, her gaze flickered to the older teen, "You two know each other how?"

He shrugged nonchalantly at this, "We've met, but that's not all that important, is it?"

This time she raised an eyebrow, her eyes and expression unreadable, "I suppose not. But the solid fact remains that we're fighting a force too powerful for us to handle alone, and I think that's the key aspect now. We have to power up the defence."

"Wait, then how do these two get involved with it?" Dark waved a hand at the twins, "I mean, they're just kids and they will get killed if they're not careful…"

"Are you saying we can't protect ourselves?" demanded Riku, flaring up instantly.

"Dark-san! You're making it sound that we're clueless five-year-olds!" added Risa, although not exactly angry at him, it seemed.

"Well, don't expect me to be around if you two are in danger!"

"Yeah right, pervert!"

"Hey!"

"Riku!"

"They can get into the inner circle, which means that we can get an idea of what normal citizens are thinking for the time being," Akane finally cut in, as if fed up with the three constant bickering all around her, "It's dangerous if they're caught, true, but I doubt that will really happen in the end."

Dark, who was halfway through his own retort with Riku, froze suddenly and the short-haired brunette smirked. Risa, who was pouting and had been attempting to calm her older sister down just stared at the purple-haired teen for a moment and then there was more awkward silence. Incredibly silent, for that matter.

Giving up on the arguing and usual bickering that seemed to be around them all the time, Daisuke cleared his throat and everyone's heads turned to face him. "So does that mean… what you're saying is that what we're fighting against may not even be human in the end?"

"Yes," Akane nodded but then turned away, looking at her watch, "But the fact is that both Riku and Risa-san should be going home otherwise they're disappearance will be noted."

"That's right," Risa scrambled up, closely followed by her sister, and they followed the girl behind as they left. But before they were all but gone, Akane nodded over at the two of them.

"By the way, Shia's been thinking about giving you private lessons sometime, Niwa-kun; it might be very useful."

As the door clicked shut behind them, Dark suddenly began to fume again, "What's with all these people? I mean, why do they have to keep speaking in riddles and not making any sense at all and expect us to agree to it all quietly!"

Watching his cousin in such a mood made Daisuke smile; whether it was due to the fact that it was rather comical or just plain nostalgic, he no longer knew, "Maybe it's just how they live and they're used to it. But Dark… I'm worried… you know?" blinking, he turned away to stare at the wall, "So much is happening at the moment and I don't get it anymore… was it because of me? Or was it just coincidence? Does it mean that I'm in danger, or is it everyone in this world that will end up getting hurt in the end as well? I know that the world doesn't revolve around me, but… it just feels like that sometimes…"

Shaking his head, the purple-haired former phantom thief stalked over and took a seat before ruffling the already ruffled red hair, "I can't really blame you that, now can I? I mean, think about all that you've been through already. Your parents were afraid that something like this would happen, but they couldn't stop it, and I'm here to make sure that you end up out of it all in one piece."

"Really?"

"Yeah, that's my promise to you."

"Hm…" pushing Dark's hand away, the redhead shifted so that he was now face to face with his cousin, "Anyway, before we ended up with unexpected visitors," he smiled softly, glad to see his friends just fine, "I wanted to ask about how you know Krad-san."

"… Just call him Krad, for one as he hates any sort of formality, and why would you want to know in the first place?" it seemed that the purple-haired teen was attempting to move the conversation away as he suddenly said in an offhand voice; "Wonder what the weather's like up there?"

"Dark," Daisuke's eyes narrowed suspiciously and Dark backed off slowly, "This might be serious to the situation, as we've both heard in the end. And I'm honestly curious about all this; how did you meet him anyway?"

Holding up his hands in an attempt to ward the boy off, "Come on, how can it be serious anyway? What does it matter? We knew each other, we were friends at one point or another, and then we decided that we couldn't stand each other's faces so we split. But the thing is, I never expected to see him of all people to come at all…"

"Come on, if it's that simple, why don't you just tell me?"

He glanced over at his cousin, who stared back, and then finally gave a sigh, "Fine, if you want the full version from the very start, then don't start whining to me afterwards about it being too long and all that other stuff."

Daisuke rolled his eyes in exasperation, "Dark, we're stuck in an underground place with nothing to do at the moment; do you really think that I'm going to start complaining about stories that go on forever? Not that I care, but still. And don't think that little explanation you gave me about the gang fight is going to work either."

"This story doesn't go on forever. It's just… long-winded and incredibly boring."

"Nope, I'm not convinced. Start away, great Phantom Thief."

"…" glaring at the boy before taking a seat, Dark began his tale, which was directly linked to Krad's own, who had told his half-brother only moments ago.

---

"It's merely a matter of perspective in the end, though, isn't it?" muttered Milea, mostly to herself, but seeing as Leah was present, she heard it too.

"Maybe, but that really isn't the point at the moment, though, is it? I mean, what are we to do in the first place?" she replied.

The blue-haired girl glanced over in her friend's direction, "You don't have to reply to me about it. Hey, this looks pretty interesting…" she managed to heave up what looked like an incredibly heavy tome as she staggered about for a moment. Leah went over to help her carry it to the desks that were literally papered with, well, paper and they opened it.

"What is it?"

"That… we're soon going to find out, aren't we?"

"Do we have to?"

"Stop complaining. You're the one who offered to help and all, remember?"

"Oh yeah…"

She opened the book, tsking at her friend's rather clueless attitude, but then focused on the book in front of her. As usual, the text in an insanely small font that forced people to squint to read what was on it, but Milea hoped for something that could help in their research. It was the whole thing with the matter of life and death on the line, and so forth, and so on.

But it was hard in their position. And although this underground world was something to gape at, if you didn't know your way around, you were more or less doomed for life. And files and such were constantly flittering to one place to another without warning so it was impossible to find what one wanted. That was their little dilemma.

It was an excuse to do something, though, so maybe they shouldn't have been complaining so much about it, but you couldn't really help it in the end.

Milea sighed while Leah groaned; they had a lot of reading to plough through, it seemed.

---

After making sure that both Risa and Riku got out safely and without any sort of mishaps, Akane left off to her own quarters to think things over. The only problem was that there were so many things she had to put into perspective that it was nearly impossible to work out what the main priority in the end and that was what annoyed her the most.

Not only that, but the people who had been pulled into this mess…

She rolled over on her bed to stare at a guttering candle, struggling to stay alive. Daisuke had been an innocent child and this was what he got from it. People he cared for, people who were close to him, they had nearly all been annihilated and it was only by chance that Dark hadn't ended up on the death list as well.

And now this.

Why was it that people like him, people who had done nothing wrong, ended up suffering the most? Why was it that fate and the world hated them so much that these powers – once considered gifts from the gods – were now something that had to be destroyed? It wasn't completely hereditary and everyone had it; it was just sometimes some people had more of a degree and a knowing of it than others.

That was why. And this stupid war between humans against their own kind… it was never going to end good and those with magic didn't even want to use it to hurt others. Those who believed to be without it had started it, and as the majority was of the non-magical-aware…

"It's so pointless," rolling over to her back, the redhead stared at the ceiling and then at her right wrist, where a small bracelet hung, "they've taken away so many lives already. And at this rate, the real trouble will begin. And not only will it be three ways, the side that wants peace will probably be obliviated by the other two."

A knock on her door made her sit up, "Yes?"

"Oh, so you're here," Clara crossed her arms once she had entered the room, "You know, you're not setting a good example to everyone else by walking off and doing things your own way. We look up to you and the others, and this isn't--"

"I've heard that before, and as I recall, it was Celes saying those exact words," Akane mumbled, cutting across her senior, "But some things have to be done on my own, and without mention of it. If they knew, it could be trouble."

"What… do you mean?"

"It doesn't really matter, I suppose I shouldn't put personal affairs before my own, especially if I'm helping trying to keep the rest of us all alive. But am I needed for something? Or was this merely a good chance for you to reprimand me for being a child?"

"You _are_ a child, Akane, and that's what worries me. So many of us are learning and finding our talents sooner than later and that means they have to be separated from their parents long before they can fully grasp the concept. I know that all the magical-gifted parents can bluff their ways out of it, but they leave their kids caught in the crossfire and then they're the ones killed!"

"I know. It's horrible."

"Babaric!" Clara shook her head furiously, "We have to stop this madness, Akane, otherwise the younger generation of children are over!"

"The completely magical side of it," Akane corrected her. "But what can we do? Starting a war would merely kill millions of more people, and then we would be in the wrong."

"Then what are we supposed to do about it!"

"I don't know…" she turned away to stare at the opposite wall, "it's in the hands of certain people now… from both sides. And when the real trouble starts, those who hurt innocent children may finally see themselves in the wrong."

"But what if they don't? What if they accuse us of being the cause of it?"

"We just have to defend our own position until they come to their senses. This evil… whatever it is, it'll attack anything and everything in its way. Us, them, everything. We can only hope that they'll accept us before they're wiped out."

"So you think that we can stop it?"

"It all depends in the end. But we aren't going to die without a fight. It's not worth it."

"Akane…"

"People we loved… they usually end up dead because of us… no matter what, we can't stop it."

"…"

---

_Footsteps._

_It was all that could be heard in that alleyway. That and the sharp, ragged gasps of those trying to live in the darkness; trying to survive another day without ended up like… the others. Those like them but not and the pain… the suffering… the fear._

_The fact that it was all gone now. That there was no one left. They had to live, for them, but it was so hard. And getting harder every day._

_People were suspicious; they hated those who were not the same. They blamed those with differences because of the monster attacks. Mortals had no proof of that, and besides, the gates between worlds could never remained sealed forever._

_There had probably been a time when they co-existed; but those days were over, and all there was was the fear. The pain. The agony._

_The fearful reality of it all._

_Gone._

_Lost._

_Mortals would soon cease to exist when the time came._

_When… no one knew._

_The footsteps were getting louder._

_Each second they stayed there, the noise would get louder in their ears; pounding all around them and bouncing off walls. People were approaching._

_And it didn't take a genius to work out that, whoever they were, they weren't friendly._

---

Shia bowed out a couple of customers from her shop before closing up. It was beginning to drizzle out there and she cursed her luck and knowing that it would be lasting a good part of the night hour. And she had forgotten her umbrella. Yes, she was going to have a fun time going home in that; that was for sure.

Running a hand through her hair and thinking about the situation now, it wasn't hard to see the danger the entire world was in. But without everyone in agreement, there was no point trying to fight back at full strength.

Besides, they weren't even at full strength, so that was rather pointless.

Already she had a lot on her hands. The last major attack had drained a lot out of the main forces and it would be a while before they recovered, so another attack would wipe them out. With her own branch of manipulation, Shia had done her best to contain it, but it wouldn't be enough if they decided an ambush or a full-force hit.

Life was beginning to get tiring.

Dragging herself over to the bookshelf, she began to shuffle through the books that sat upon it. She had gotten word from the others about what needed to be found and that every little bit of information counted, so she might as well try and do something of use while she was here; waiting for the rain to blow over.

By the sounds of the rain getting heavier and the occasional flash and rumble of lightning, it would be a while before that actually happened.

Well, it was time to dig out even older memories; some good, most of them rather… painful to remember. But if it helped, in the end, it'd be worth it. If not…

---

"Spells, spells…"

A low muttering was all that could be heard down the now-empty hallways. Everyone had either gone off to do their jobs or had crashed for the night. But there was someone still awake in that area, and they seemed intent on completing what they had begun.

"Why are mortals so afraid of it? I don't get it…"

Moonlight filtered into the closed library, throwing patches onto the bookcases of the school's library but no one else was there to witness it. It was way past curfew, and still, that one person moved from one place to another like a shadow, eyes sweeping over every book cover in an attempt to find something, anything, that would help.

"The Niwas suffered from it… the family who I knew so little of, but were so kind," the person murmured, her dark hair pulled back into two plaits, "Risa and Riku were crushed at the accusations. It was only by luck that their parents had so much pull in society, otherwise they might have died as well…"

Ritsuko stopped abruptly at this, staring at her hands, which were shaking just slightly, "And why is it that I feel so uncertain about something? Is something going to happen to us all?"

She blinked before collecting herself and pulled down another book, flicking it open deftly, "What is so dangerous about them and why…"

Starting at the sound of the door creaking, Ritsuko stepped back, the book falling from her hands. Pressing herself against the bookcase behind her, she edged into a shadowed area, hiding her from view. Footsteps, as quiet as they were, could be heard and her breath hitched up a notch, not knowing who or what it could be. No one was supposed to be here; the janitor's had long since gone home, so why was it…?

Moments passed, the owner of the footsteps never coming into a place where she could see or identify the intruder, and then the door closed again and silence.

She allowed herself a breath of relief, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart.

Whoever it was, they were now gone; but she couldn't help wondering what their intentions were. Although it could have been just some wandering spirit… Ritsuko smashed the option with a slight snort, giving herself time to regulate her breathing and to stop her legs from shaking. No way, it just wasn't possible.

But that sudden disjoint feeling of uneasiness that swarmed the room like a virus until the thing had left. What was it?

She knew that there was no way she would ever be able to find out now, but she wasn't even supposed to be here. Hell, she didn't even attend this place, but they had the largest library known, even if it was just for students.

Deciding that she had done enough looking around for the night, Ritsuko left, hoping against everything that that feeling had been nothing more than a figment of her imagination.

---

Something was stirring. Awakening.

Yet… it had no form.

It would wait.

---

I'd tell you now to shoot me, but then I wouldn't be able to complete some of my _better_ stories. You'll have to forgive me, this thing has gone to hell and I've lost all sense of plot, characters, etc. Not only do I have to go through that again, but this is such a bad… chapter-thingy. I really have nothing to defend myself against the horridness.

Much thanks to Makurayami Ookami (Krad will say more… one day… if I don't die)…Who was the only one who reviewed the last chapter. oO Well, I suppose I should have expected as much. Ah well, always forward and never back and… hell, I need to update other things that I haven't updated for a while…


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